Ishant Sharma and Jasprit Bumrah had quite an impressive time against Australia when India toured down under in 2018-19 and won their maiden Test series there the same year under the captaincy of Virat Kohli.
Bumrah made his India debut in 2016 in white-ball cricket but many felt that his bowling action would not sustain the rigors of Test cricket. But he made his Test debut in 2018 against Australia and by the end of the season, he had 48 wickets in just 9 Tests.
However, there were times when Jasprit Bumrah struggled as well and his one-time teammate Ishant Sharma recalled one such instance when the pacer was struggling to find his rhythm and he had to stop then captain Virat Kohli from talking to him.
“I knew one day Bumrah will become a leader. I remember in 2018 when we were playing a Test in Australia, Bumrah’s first spell didn’t go down well. Virat told me ‘I think I should go and speak to him,” Ishant said on Cricbuzz.
However, Ishant says that he had to keep Kohli from talking to Bumrah, saying that the pacer was smart and knows what he needed to do to get the results.
“I replied, ‘He (Bumrah) is a very smart bowler. He understands it. Usko chhor de. Usko pata hai kya karna, kya nahi karna (Leave him be. He understands what is needed). That he’s quite smart. He understands the game and situation.’ When you understand the situation, especially in Test cricket, you can come back quickly,” Ishant recalled.
29-year-old Bumrah has now played 30 Tests and taken 128 wickets in them at 21.99 including eight five-wicket hauls and one hat-trick which came against the West Indies.
(Cricbuzz inputs)
