Former Pakistan cricketer Salman Butt on Wednesday (13th July) reacted to the comments claiming Jasprit Bumrah is the best all-format bowler in the world. He said that although the Indian pacer is arguably the best, Shaheen Afridi is not much behind him.
Bumrah on Tuesday (12th July) made the entire cricket fraternity go gaga about him. He bowled one of the finest spells in the first ODI against England. The pacer wreaked havoc on the hosts' batting line-up that helped his side bundle out the opposition for just 110 runs.
Among all the 10 English wickets that fell in the first innings, 6 belonged to Bumrah. The speedster registered his career-best ODI figures of 6/19 and helped his side bowl out England inside 26 overs.
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Bumrah’s performance was lauded by everyone across the globe and his staggering bowling even made former England skipper Nasser Hussain call him the best bowler across formats on air. If this was not enough, batting legend Sachin Tendulkar hailed him as the best all-format bowler.
However, a day after Bumrah’s heroics, Butt reacted to the comments that experts cited for the pacer.
Speaking in a video posted on his YouTube channel, Salman Butt argued that Shaheen is no less than Bumrah and will only become better with experience.
He lauded both Bumrah and Shaheen as world-class bowlers and said that the way they bowl with the new ball that feeling can’t be there while watching other bowlers.
“See, Shaheen hasn't played as much cricket but he is among the very best. He is no less than him (Bumrah). In fact, Shaheen with experience, will only get better and then he has more pace and offers a different angle. See, both are world cricket's finest and watching them bowl is an exciting experience.
“It's great fun to watch both Bumrah and Shaheen perform, and the way they bowl with the new ball it feels as if a wicket can go down anytime. You don't get this feeling watching any other bowler," Salman Butt said.
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Butt said despite being only a 22-year-old, Shaheen has been tremendous and it’s not fair to compare both these players as one is experienced while the other is not.
“Nonetheless, for a 20-year-old bowler to perform in the manner that he has is not easy. Both are outstanding. Obviously, Bumrah has played a lot more and is a brilliant performer so at the moment, there shouldn't be any comparison. One has played a lot, the other not so much,” he said.
Taking about Shaheen’s record, the left-arm pacer made his debut in 2018 and has taken 204 wickets from 96 international matches. He is currently rated among the best bowlers in world cricket.
On the other hand, Bumrah in a short span of time has become the leader of the Indian bowling attack and has taken 316 international wickets from 159 matches.
