Legendary South African cricketer AB de Villiers has stated that he feels that pacer Jasprit Bumrah should’ve been the Player of the Tournament over Sanju Samson in the recent T20 World Cup 2024. India won the tournament by defeating New Zealand in the final on Sunday, March 8, in Ahmedabad.
Jasprit Bumrah was named Player of the Final for his 4/15. On the other hand, Sanju Samson, who had scores of 97*, 89, and 89 in the three knockout games for India, was named the Player of the Tournament. Samson had made 321 runs in five innings with a strike rate of 199.37.
AB de Villiers reflected on the T20 World Cup 2026 and made a case for Bumrah, saying that the pacer should have been the Player of the Tournament.
"It was a really close call between Sanju Samson and Bumrah. Bumrah was the top wicket-taker, and so he was pushing for the player of the tournament. But to me, there were pivotal moments and overs that he bowled that I felt like maybe he deserved more of a mention for. It should have been closer,” said de Villiers on his YouTube channel.
In 8 matches in India’s campaign, Bumrah took 14 wickets, tied with Varun Chakravarthy for the most wickets in the T20 World Cup 2026. However, Bumrah’s wickets came at an economy of 6.2, despite India scoring three scores of 250-plus in three out of four games in the tournament.
Bumrah's performances to keep England and New Zealand quiet were recognized by AB de Villiers, who emphasized the difficulty of being a fast bowler and bowling good yorkers.
"It's not easy to bowl as a fast bowler in India unless you are a Jasprit Bumrah. Even he was expensive in a couple of his overs during the tournament. But when it mattered most in the semifinal and final, he bowled insane overs. I've never seen anything like it. He is hittable, but when it matters, there is a different gear this guy hits, and he goes to a different planet. An incredible performer and an asset to cricket in India," said De Villiers.
Jasprit Bumrah will now be in action for the Mumbai Indians when the IPL 2026 begins on March 28 onwards.
