"Pitch has got easier, we'll look to capitalize" - Jasprit Bumrah
Jasprit Bumrah feels the pitch at Trent Bridge has eased out for batting as the first India-England Test has progressed. The pacer said the visitors would look to capitalize on it on the final day by taking the match "session by session" with a "good mindset."
England were bowled out for just 183 in the first innings. In a sign of how batting has gotten progressively better, India put up 276 in their first essay followed by the hosts' 303-run reply. But despite the it losing spice with regards to swing and seam, the pitch still has some good carry to trouble the new batsman upfront. Jasprit Bumrah said in a virtual press conference:
"It felt like it. A lot of heavy rolling was also done on it so it got a little slower, it felt like it. As soon as we bowled the fuller lengths, it was a little easier [compared to] how it was in the first innings so, then, we had to create pressure. But yes, the wicket has got better and we are looking to capitalize on that as well."
After a topsy-turvy day, India left the field with 52 runs on the board, at the cost of KL Rahul's wicket. They need 157 runs to register a historic win and go one game up in the five-Test series. Jasprit Bumrah exuded confidence in his team to chase the total but said India won't look "too far ahead." He added:
"When you start to play the game of cricket, you have to believe in yourself, you want to win and you play to win. But, yeah, we don't want to look too far ahead, we've got a few starts, we'll take it session by session with a good mindset and hopefully take things from there."
Jasprit Bumrah was himself crucial to India's strong position in the Test. The right-armer picked his sixth five-wicket haul in the longest format and concluded with figures of 5-64.
"We are very happy for them" - Jasprit Bumrah on Neeraj Chopra's historic win
Jasprit Bumrah also spoke about Neeraj Chopra's historic gold medal win in the men's Javelin Throw at the Tokyo 2020 Olympics. He said he and the Indian team are proud of the achievement and happy for all the athletes who represented the country at the marquee event. Jasprit Bumrah signed off:
"We got the news when we came inside for lunch. We were hearing that he was in the final. So, yeah, congratulations and you know, just participating in the Olympics is a big achievement. Representing your country, a lot of hard work goes there and then getting a gold medal, the first in track and field, it's a big achievement. Proud of all the athletes who were there, whenever they achieve, and whenever they represented the country, it's a great sign. We are very happy for them."
Rohit Sharma and Cheteshwar Pujara are standing strong at the crease in Nottingham. As always, the first hour will be crucial in deciding the direction of the Test match.