Following a stellar return to form in the first Test against England at Trent Bridge, Indian speedster Jasprit Bumrah said he did not make any major adjustments to his bowling after facing criticism from certain corners earlier on the UK tour.
Bumrah, who has been outstanding for India since his debut in Test matches, had a one-off poor outing in the World Test Championship final against New Zealand in June. The ace quick was the only specialist seamer from both sides to go wicketless across the two innings.
Given India heavily depended on Bumrah to provide them breakthroughs at one end, disappointed fans had a real go at his performance over social media. Several pundits even questioned whether this is the start of a downward curve in his career, with a back stress fracture late in 2019 perhaps still holding him back.
Bumrah silenced his critics in the best possible fashion, delivering spells of the highest quality against England at the start of the long five-match Test series. He picked up four wickets for 46 runs in the first innings and added five to his kitty in the second at the cost of only 64.
“Not a lot of adjustments, to be very honest. Just mindset adjustments – like being in the moment, back my skill and not look at the end result too much,”
he said.
The five-fer in the second-innings was Bumrah’s sixth for India in Test cricket and also his second at Trent Bridge. The 27-year-old pacer has now taken 92 wickets from his 21 Tests at a jaw-dropping average of 22.14.
