"Sometimes he tries too hard to bowl outswingers" - Sanjay Bangar on the one area Jasprit Bumrah needs to be mindful of in England
Former Indian batting coach Sanjay Bangar reckons that lead pacer Jasprit Bumrah sometimes tries too hard to to bowl outswingers, which has an impact on his efficiency. According to Bangar, the right-arm pacer is primarily an inswing bowler and must focus harder on his stock ball.
The 28-year-old will lead the Indian fast-bowling attack in the rescheduled Test in England, which will begin at Edgbaston in Birmingham on July 1. Mohammad Shami, Mohammed Siraj, Umesh Yadav and Prasidh Krishna are the other pace bowlers in the Indian Test squad.
Sharing his views on what Bumrah needs to do to make an impression in the Birmingham Test, Bangar said on Star Sports’ Game Plan:
“The one challenge for him is that sometimes he tries too hard to bowl outswingers. However, he is a specialist inswing bowler. He should not forget his stock delivery. He needs to use his variations like variations. So he must concentrate a lot more on his stock ball and also bowling fuller lengths.”
The Indian pacer was part of the four-day warm-up match at Leicester, which ended in a draw on Sunday. He looked in decent rhythm even though he only claimed one wicket.
“He pushed his length forward” - Bangar on how Bumrah turned things around during last England tour
Bumrah did not have a bright start to his tour of England last year as he went wicketless in the World Test Championship (WTC) final against New Zealand and came in for a lot of criticism. However, he picked up the pieces and was brilliant in the series against England as India won two of the four Tests.
On what changed for the Indian pacer between the WTC final and the England Tests, Bangar explained:
“Before the four Tests in England, Bumrah also played in the World Test Championship final. In this Test match, which was basically the first one of the England tour last year, his length in Southampton was back by quite a bit. Because of this, he did not taste any success. After that, we saw a change wherein he pushed his length forward and started having a lot of success. He ended up having a very good series.”
Bumrah was India’s leading wicket-taker during the four Tests in England, claiming 18 scalps at an average of 20.83.