Asia

Bumrah responds to Kohli’s SOS with the ball of the match

December 29, 2021
Henry Club

It takes something special to break a strong partnership. Virat Kohli The ball was handed over to Jasprit Bumrah and he did the rest. A well-established rope van der Dussen, who had faced 64 balls by then, could not do much for Bumrah’s special.

The previous delivery provided the set-up, bowled close to the stump and slightly fuller. Van der Dussen played it towards covers. Then, Bumrah goes a bit wide of the crease, bowls at length, angle-switch forced deception. The batsman thought he had the line covered and hands shoulders, only to see the ball break fast enough to hit the top of the off stump. Even for a set batsman it was impossible to play but that is what Bumrah does, opening the game for India. This time, he did so to break the 40-run third-wicket partnership between Dean Elgar and van der Dussen, which was still the ball-of-the-match.

Bumrah did this to Ollie Pope at the Oval, when England Struggling to draw a draw in the fourth Test earlier this year. That break-back ball had prompted former Pakistan pacer Aaqib Javed to compare the Indian pace with Wasim Akram. A return to the 1992 World Cup would recapture Akram’s magic, the way he cleaned up Alan Lamb and Chris Lewis – Lewis had a major break-back – to win the trophy for Pakistan. Bumrah’s influence has been Akram-esque.

Back in September, after the Oval Test, Javed offered insight into Bumrah’s bowling, praising the bowler for his ability to produce power. “If your foot is fully engaged (at release), you are using optimal ground force. Your front knee follows, and should be straight. This allows ground force to go into your limbs. Bumrah does it all well,” Javed had told Indian Express, adding: “When he is about to release the ball, his hand and right shoulder are at 90 degrees. His right hand is parallel to his shoulder and his front hand rests in his (left) ribcage. To generate momentum Depends on how well you lock your front arm into your ribs. The scope he uses from loading to delivery release is copybook.”

Like England, the Proteas’ resolve was also buoyed by Bumrah’s brilliance at SuperSport Park on Wednesday and no wonder India’s batting coach Vikram Rathour heaped praise on the team’s biggest match-winner as he played van der Dussen. played back the dismissal of. “That’s the quality of the bowler isn’t it? He set him up really well. All our bowlers bowled well today. They were really on the spot, bowling really well. And Bumrah bowled a great ball at that point. It was,” Rathore said.

Bumrah’s cricketing wits make him even more lethal and the slight change in angle to dismiss van der Dussen was not an isolated case. He also defeated Ollie Robinson at Lord’s when the latter, along with Jos Buttler, threatened to deny India’s charge of victory in the final session of the game. Bumrah’s move then was a brilliantly disguised slow ball, an off-cutter that had trapped Robinson leg-before and sucked the life out of England’s fight.

Today, a pinpoint yorker to Mahal’s nightwatchman Keshav Maharaj on the final ball of the day rendered the cherry on the cake. “She was exceptional bowling and that’s what you expect from a player like her,” Rathore said.

The captain can make or break a fast bowler and Bumrah has benefited from Kohli’s smart handling. After twisting his ankle in the first innings and bowling just 7.2 overs, the captain used his main strike bowler in short bursts in the second innings, bringing him back towards the end of the day, when Bumrah was fully could bow down. The wicket-taking balls were about 143 kph, allowing spectators to ignore the South African broadcaster’s description – “right-handed fast-medium”.

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