Jasprit Bumrah had three wickets, but it could and should have been more, as Yashasvi Jaiswal dropped a tough but manageable chance off centurion Ollie Pope, before Jasprit Bumrah caused some self-inflicted damage in the last over of the day by dismissing Harry Brook, only to have been caught over-stepping.
Jasprit Bumrah, time and time again, keeps on proving why he is regarded as the best bowler in international cricket currently. On a placid Headingley pitch, Jasprit Bumrah showed his class as he dismissed Zak Crawley, Ben Duckett and Joe Root on Day 2 of the ongoing first Test. With the dismissal of Duckett in the third and final session, Jasprit Bumrah achieved yet another milestone, and it is truly one to savour.
The India speedster Jasprit Bumrah now has 148 wickets from 60 innings in the SENA countries. He has gone past former Pakistan pacer Wasim Akram in the list of Asian bowlers with the most wickets in the SENA countries. Jasprit Bumrah now tops the list, which also has Akram (146), Anil Kumble (141), Ishant Sharma (130), and Mohammed Shami (123). The 31-year-old has been the standout bowler from both England and India in the first Test as he has gotten the ball to talk on a pitch which is offering little to no assistance for the bowlers.
Jasprit Bumrah’s 3-fer gives India hope on Day 2 vs solid England reply
In the second session on Day 2, Jasprit Bumrah dismissed Zak Crawley (4) in the very first over. He got the right-hander all squared up and as a result, Zak Crawley ended up handing a simple catch to Karun Nair in the slips cordon. On the other hand, Ben Duckett really got his eye in and was seeing the ball like a football. Despite his stay at the crease for more than two hours, he was unable to get the better of Jasprit Bumrah.
The India pace sensation finally got the last laugh as Duckett was bowled in the final session on Day 2 for 62 runs. After dismissing the left-hander, Jasprit Bumrah had a sheepish smile on his face, and he even mouthed a word or two to let Duckett know. Possibly, Jasprit Bumrah remembered Duckett’s words before the series started, as while speaking to Mail Sport, the England opener remarked that Jasprit Bumrah has nothing that he can surprise him with.
Jasprit Bumrah came back and bowled with the same venom in his second spell. He accounted for Ben Duckett when the left-hander inside edged one into his stumps for 62. This wicket helped Jasprit Bumrah break Wasim Akram’s long-standing record of picking the most wickets by an Asian bowler in SENA countries. Jasprit Bumrah now has 147 wickets in 55 innings.
A couple of overs later, Jasprit Bumrah should have got the wicket of Pope but for another drop catch. This time, the guilty party was Yashasvi Jaiswal, who could not hold on to a sharp catch at third slip when Pope got an outside edge while trying to guide the ball. Pope went on to score a century.
Bumrah translated his displeasure into another wicket when he dismissed England’s best player Joe Root towards the fag end of the day’s play. Root was guilty of pushing at ball that bounced more. He could have got another wicket in the last over of the day when Harry Brook was out caught but replays showed  Bumrah had overstepped.
Even though Bumrah’s 3-fer seemed a ray of hope for Indian team, listless bowling and support from other bowlers gives a worry about Bumrah’s workload management and raises injury concerns for the star Indian speedster. Former Indian wicket keeper now commentator Dinesh Karthik while praising Jasprit Bumrah has suggested other bowlers to step up.
Dinesh Karthik is worried about Jasprit Bumrah’s workload management
Dinesh Karthik is worried about India’s overreliance on Jasprit Bumrah and the impact it can have on the fast-bowler’s fitness. The former wicketkeeper-batter felt that the ‘void’ between Jasprit Bumrah and the rest of the bowling attack was ‘too much’ on the second day of the Headingley Test in the Anderson-Tendulkar Trophy, adding that it was high time that other bowlers ‘pushed’ skipper Shubman Gill and took the initiative.
Just like several days on the tour of Australia last year, Bumrah was India’s only wicket-taker on Sunday. He got three scalps for 48 runs in 13 overs as Mohammed Siraj, Prasidh Krishna, Ravindra Jadeja, and Shardul Thakur all went wicketless in the remaining 36. Ollie Pope scored a century and Ben Duckett hit 62 as England finished the day at a good position of 209/3 with India’s lead at 262 runs.
“There was too much of a void between [Bumrah] and the rest,” Karthik told Cricbuzz after the day’s play.
“And you could see England also had it on the back of their minds that, ‘If we play this spell, we’d have a good chance’. That’s going to put pressure on the skipper because every time he’s under pressure, he’s going to go to Bumrah now. [But, at the same time,] he (Bumrah) has got a body that he has to take care of,” he added.
In a similar scenario, Jasprit Bumrah’s body broke down in the fifth Test on that Australian tour, which led to him taking his name off the captaincy options list. He has already declared he might be able to play just three Tests in this rubber.
“In a day where there are hardly 60 overs bowled, Bumrah has already bowled 13. Every time you need a wicket, it has to be Bumrah. And he always does it for you so you get into that habit. Others need to find a way to definitely push the captain and say, ‘I am ready, give me the ball, this is my plan, I want to do this’,” Karthik added.
Jasprit Bumrah’s troubles were compounded by two dropped catches and Harry Brook’s wicket off a no-ball in the last over of the day. For now, Jasprit Bumrah remains the spearhead. But unless his fellow pacers rise to the occasion, India risk squandering strong positions in this high-stakes series.
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