Throwback to when Andy Roberts said Jasprit Bumrah could take the new ball for West Indies in the 1980s

Former Indian head coach Ravi Shastri recounted when West Indian pace maestro Andy Roberts could take the new ball for the Caribbean team back in their heydays in the 1980s. This was back in 2019 when India squared off against West Indies in a two-match series that commenced the inaugural cycle of the World Test Championship (WTC) 2019-21.

“The ultimate compliment for Jasprit Bumrah came in 2019. When I was coach here and we were playing a Test series and he dismantled the West Indies in 2-and-a-half or three days in the two Tests matches,” Shastri said.

He added, “And Andy Roberts walked up to him in Antigua. Andy and Curtly (Ambrose) together. Andy walked up to him and said ‘You, young man could have taken the new ball in our era’.”

“You will not get a bigger compliment than that. Roberts was the leader of the pack that had Marshall, Garner, Croft, and Holding. No better compliment than that for Jasprit Bumrah. That was in 2019, he has come along leaps and bounds since then,” Shastri further mentioned.

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Shastri went into great detail regarding Bumrah’s bowling technique thereafter. He touched upon his unique release point, wrist position, and the ability to hit different lengths at will. Shastri added that other pacers can equal the pace that Bumrah bowls at but what separates the Mumbai Indians (MI) speedster is how hard his deliveries hit the deck.

“His release point. From where Mohammed Siraj releases the ball to where Jasprit Bumrah releases the ball is 48 cm. And with a straight wrist. Normally when you release the ball from ahead, it has to be a bouncer. When you release the ball from behind, it’s pitched,” Shastri said.

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He added, “But from there, to be able to yorker at will, to bowl the bouncer and bowl a hard length, that’s amazing. That’s what separates him from the rest. The pace might say 140 kph, but it’s hitting the ball a lot harder.”

Bumrah claimed 15 wickets in India’s victorious campaign in the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2024. He maintained an economy rate around four runs per over and was also adjudged as the Player of the Tournament for his impressive performances.

Finale mindset

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Stats would show that Bumrah is third on the wicket-takers’ chart with 15 wickets from eight matches but his value remained immeasurable for India in the ICC showpiece, which they had won after 17 years, beating South Africa by seven runs.

Bumrah underlined his value for this side taking two wickets of Reeza Hendricks early and Marco Jansen at the end as he kept SA run-making in check.

“I tried to keep calm. We play the sport for this, I am really over the moon, my son is here, family is here, we’ve been working really hard towards this, no better feeling than that. We play sport for the big stages,” said Bumrah during the presentation ceremony.

He said the significance of the occasion fired him up to do even better.

“On the big day, you have to give more, throughout the tournament I felt very clear and calm. At my peak mindset I think of one ball at a time. The emotions can take over, but now the job is done.” Bumrah, however, admitted once the job was done he too was unable to keep his emotions in control while his teammates wept with joy.

“Usually I’m the one who tries to keep my emotions in check and get the job done but today I don’t have many words, I don’t usually cry after a game but the emotions are taking over,” he conceded.

Bumrah said he exploited the reverse swing well in the second spell, where he dismissed Jansen.

“That over I thought length ball (against Jansen) was the option, it was reverse-swinging and I was glad to execute,” he added.

(With PTI inputs)