India might have lost the recently concluded Border Gavaskar Trophy, but one major positive for them in the tournament was the bowling performances of ace speedster Jasprit Bumrah. At the top of his game in terms of skill and control, Bumrah is arguably the best-ever bowler of this generation, being a nightmare for opposition batters to face.
With spellbinding performances across formats that sometimes defy logic and the law of averages, it is sometimes difficult to think that Bumrah is indeed a mere mortal. Because of some of his recent performances, he has elevated himself to a higher astral plane in the world of cricketers. Here’s a look at 5 times Jasprit Bumrah proved that he is not human, with his captivating bowling performances.
- 6/33 vs Australia, 2018
On his first-ever tour Down Under, Jasprit Bumrah left a telling mark on the Australians with his superb performance at MCG. Batting first, India scored 443/7 and then put pressure on the Aussie batters. The hosts were dismantled for 151, with Bumrah being the wrecker in chief. He got Marcus Harris off a short ball, and then Travis Head was clean-bowled by an inswinger. Bumrah also accounted for the wickets of Tim Paine, Hazlewood and Nathan Lyon. But the crown jewel, however, was the slower delivery to Shaun Marsh off the final ball of a session that left the southpaw bamboozled. Thanks to Bumrah’s performance, India registered a rare win at Melbourne.
2. 6/19 vs England, 2022
Bumrah’s best figures in ODI cricket came against the then-reigning champs in their backyard. Bowling first, Bumrah broke through with the wickets of Jason Roy, Bairstow, Livingstone, and Joe Root as England were 26/5 at one point. Bumrah returned to add two more wickets to his kitty as England were bundled out for just 110 runs. India chased down that target in under 20 overs.
3. 6/45 vs England, 2024
India were a Test down when they traveled to Vizag to face an England team, that was high on confidence. The morale of the visitors though was sapped quickly as Bumrah unleashed a spell from hell to disrupt the English middle order. The visitors were looking good at 114/1 when Bumrah was re-introduced. He got the wicket of Joe Root with a lovely outswinger and then Ollie Pope was cleaned up with a toe-crushing yorker that was virtually unplayable. Hot on his heels, Bumrah picked the wickets of Jonny Bairstow and Ben Stokes as well, before cleaning up the tail as India roared back to level the series.
4. 2/18 vs South Africa, T20I Final, 2024
Statistically, Bumrah might have plenty of better performances, but the gravity of the game is what matters here. In the World Cup final, Bumrah set the tone by getting rid of Reeza Hendricks with a solid outswinger. South Africa fought back through Klaasen and Stubbs and needed a run a ball at one stage. Bumrah returned to bowl the 16th over and got rid of Marco Jansen with a beautiful inswinger, totally changing the game situation. Thanks to Bumrah’s clutch performance, India managed to defend the total and win a T20I World Cup after 17 years.
5. 5/30 against Australia, 2024
In the first Border Gavaskar Test of 2024-25, Bumrah was given the added responsibility of captaincy with Rohit Sharma unavailable. India batted first and could only muster 150 runs, getting all out within the first day. Many would have feared the worst after that batting collapse, but Bumrah had other plans. On a bouncy deck, he unleashed a lethal spell that was too hot to handle for the hosts. Debutant McSweeney was trapped LBW, Khawaja caught at slip and then Steve Smith was dismissed for a first-ball duck. Bumrah picked two more as Australia were all out for a meagre 104 runs. India went on to score big in the second innings and win a famous Test at the hostile Optus Stadium in Perth.
