"Jasprit Bumrah will play the longest among the current crop of pacers" - Ishant Sharma
Ishant Sharma believes speedster Jasprit Bumrah has what it takes to become the leader of the Indian bowling attack in the future. The 32-year-old pacer also feels that among the current crop of quicks, Jasprit Bumrah could represent his country for the longest time.
Jasprit Bumrah showed maturity in leading the visitors' bowling attack Down Under when experienced campaigners like Ishant Sharma and Mohammed Shami were injured. Thus the Delhi pacer is keen to observe how Bumrah continues to groom younger fast bowlers in the future.
In a video conference before the third Test against England in Ahmedabad, Ishant Sharma, who is on the cusp of playing his 100th Test, observed that Jasprit Bumrah has the wherewithal to lead Team India's pace battery.
"If there is someone who will play for the longest among the current crop of pacers, then he will be Jasprit Bumrah. He has to lead the way for the youngsters. The way he grooms the other pacers will be very important," Ishant Sharma said.
Each bowler in the Indian team has a different role: Ishant Sharma
The injury woes of India Down Under turned out to be a blessing in disguise. That is because it helped unearth fast bowlers like Mohammed Siraj, Navdeep Saini, Shardul Thakur and T Natarajan, who came of age and performed in tough situations.
Ishant Sharma believes each player in the bowling attack has a different role to perform. For instance, while Saini looks to hurry batsman with pace, Siraj prefers to strangle them with accuracy. Thus the 32-year-old Ishant Sharma opined that the strength of each bowler should be utilised to benefit the team:
"Each bowler has a different role in the team. If you tell Saini to bowl at one place only and if you tell Siraj to consistently bowl at 140 kmph, you are not doing justice to their skills. So you need to understand the strength of each bowler and back it accordingly," Ishant Sharma asserted.
Jasprit Bumrah is likely to be back in India's playing XI for the pink-ball Test against England which begins on February 24.
With the pink ball likely to seam and swing a bit more than the red one, the likes of Bumrah and Ishant Sharma could be key to the hosts' chances of winning the third Test.
The hosts cannot afford to lose another Test in the series if they are to qualify for the upcoming World Test Championship final.
Meanwhile, England will hope for James Anderson to make the pink ball 'talk' and put pressure on Team India.