Jasprit Bumrah and the art of making things happen
With just 230 runs to defend, India needed Jasprit Bumrah to reproduce his magic against England in Lucknow. As Mohammed Siraj was leaking runs from the other end, getting an early wicket was paramount.
Bumrah bowled a series of outswingers to Dawid Malan from over the wicket, some even too good to take the edge. He also trapped the southpaw with one that pitched on leg stump and swung away. Although it hit Malan on the pads, Bumrah was aware that it pitched outside leg.
He quickly turned to round the wicket against the left-hander and brought both the slip cordon and bowled/LBW in play. Bumrah's first four deliveries to Malan came in with the angle and straightened just a bit.
The southpaw got a boundary on Bumrah's third delivery from round the wicket, but little did he know that he was just getting set up by an astute cricketing mind. Bumrah then bowled a back-of-a-length delivery that just skidded with the angle, unlike his previous balls, and that induced a false shot from Malan. The opener tried a premeditated square cut, but could only chop it into his stumps.
Joe Root then came to the crease, an ideal option in this situation with the required run rate out of the equation. Adding an extra slip, Bumrah indicated that he would bowl an outswinger. But the star bowler outfoxed Root, bowling an inswinger at a fuller length and trapping him in front.
Amidst the roar of fifty thousand spectators at the Ekana Stadium, the genius of Jasprit Bumrah shone through. He had produced the magic that the Men in Blue desperately needed. Joe Root could only trudge back to the pavilion in disbelief, but he wasn't the first one to be stunned by Bumrah's brilliance this World Cup and dare I say, won't be the last.
Batters' helpless reactions testament to Jasprit Bumrah's skillset
After spending almost 11 months on the sidelines due to injury, it would be difficult for any sportsperson to hit the ground running straight away. But Jasprit Bumrah worked rigorously on returning as a 10-over bowler and that has reflected in his performances in the 2023 World Cup.
In almost every match this World Cup, Bumrah has produced a moment of magic. Recall that Australia's Mitchell Marsh was set up with five deliveries tight on off-stump and then a back-of-a-length ball took his outside edge.
Apart from the back-of-the-length delivery which seems to be Bumrah's go-to weapon, he has also added a well-disguised slower ball to his armory, something that he is using more often than before.
In his own words, Bumrah considers it as a proper off-spin delivery. It was the one that he dismissed Mohammad Rizwan with and is a ball-of-the-tournament contender. Even Shadab Khan was not spared in that match-defining spell.
When Mahmullah was cleaned up by a searing yorker, the smile on the face of Jasprit Bumrah said it all. It was almost as if he knew he was too good for the batter.
Bumrah bowling even better than in the 2019 World Cup
Jasprit Bumrah was India's highest wicket-taker in the 2019 World Cup with 18 wickets from nine games at an economy rate of just 4.41 and an average of 20.61. Four years on, he has taken his game to the next level on the big stage.
In six matches, the Indian pacer already has 14 wickets to his name, only behind Australian leg-spinner Adam Zampa in the wicket-taking charts. Bumrah has an economy rate of just 3.91, which is the best among the top 20 wicket-takers barring Ravindra Jadeja.
He averages just 15.07, which is again ranked second, this time among the top 50 wicket-takers in the competition with only an extraordinary Mohammed Shami (8.44) faring better. Out of the 323 balls that Bumrah has bowled so far in the competition, a staggering 219 have been dots, which accounts for a massive 67.8 percent of his total deliveries.
Bumrah was always a fantastic all-phase bowler. But the way in which he has set up batters with his variety, both with the new ball and old, has raised the benchmark of his performances. The rise in slower deliveries has added a bit more suspense on what to expect from the pacer at the death, apart from searing yorkers.
It also highlights what India were missing when Bumrah was away with an injury. The Men in Blue needed him to hit the ground running in the World Cup, and so far, he has been the talisman that they wanted him to be.
India will certainly want him to sustain this incredible form throughout the tournament and take them all the way to the summit. A long injury lay-off often alters fast bowlers' careers. But Jasprit Bumrah is special and he just makes things happen.