“I take my hat off to him, it’s been unreal” - Sean Abbott lauds Indian pacer ahead of BGT 2024-25 4th Test
Australian pacer Sean Abbott remains in awe of Team India's pace spearhead Jasprit Bumrah, given his performances in the ongoing Border-Gavaskar Trophy. Abbott said he takes his hat off to the right-arm speedster for consistently applying pressure on the Australian batters and doing so session after session.
Bumrah has been the standout bowler across both sides in the series, taking 21 wickets in three Tests, averaging an astonishing 10.90. The 31-year-old has kept the Aussie batters on their toes, notably the opening pair of Usman Khawaja and Nathan McSweeney, dismissing them four times each in the series.
Speaking to reporters on Monday ahead of the Boxing Day Test, the New South Welshman highlighted Bumrah's peculiar action and claimed that it's a blessing it wasn't coached.
Abbott feels they are gifted to watch Bumrah bowl and said, as quoted by Perth Now:
"He has any delivery on tap, the accuracy, the pace. He just ticks all the boxes, session after session. There's not been one time when he's bowled in this series where he hasn't been putting pressure on the Australian batsmen. I take my hat off to him, it's been unreal. We're seeing a master at work. Maybe it was a good thing he never had it coached out of him. He just remained Jasprit Bumrah for his whole life so far and his whole career. We all get to witness (his bowling) ... he's one of the greatest we've seen."
With Bumrah dismissing McSweeney four times in six innings, the Aussie selectors were forced to drop the latter from the squad for the fourth and fifth Tests. Sam Konstas is likely to replace him at the top for the Boxing Day Test.
"They're pretty invested in the journey of those around them" - Sean Abbott on Big 3
With the trio of Pat Cummins, Mitchell Starc, and Josh Hazlewood hailing from New South Wales, Abbott lauded them for taking an interest in youngsters when coming to play for the state side.
He stated:
"Anyone who comes into the side, they always have this growth mindset even when they've been playing Test cricket for however many years. I'm very lucky that whenever those guys have come back to play for NSW ... or I've been on tour for Australia or especially this week, they're so good with their time, to help those around them. They're pretty invested in the journey of those around them ... they're busy cricketers, there's a lot of pressure on the guys to go out and do their job."
With Hazlewood out injured, Scott Boland remains the frontrunner to play the Boxing Day Test at the Melbourne Cricket Ground.