The level of Jasprit Bumrah’s dominance in the three Tests played so far in the Border-Gavaskar Trophy has been such that it has become India’s biggest strength and also its unavoidable weakness with the benchmark he is setting.
With 21 wickets in three Tests, Bumrah is on top of the bowling charts for the series with the next highest wicket-takers being the Australian pace duo of skipper Pat Cummins and Mitchell Starc with 14 wickets apiece.
The next best Indian bowler is Mohammad Siraj with 13 wickets in three Tests.
The story of Bumrah also tells the trajectory of India’s fortunes in the series and gives a sneak peek into the challenges that lie ahead with the crucial Boxing Day Test in Melbourne and the fifth Test in Sydney.
India’s biggest concern will be the support that Bumrah gets from the other end which isn’t what it should be at the moment.
At present, the Australian batters view Bumrah as their single biggest threat and feel reasonably comfortable once that barrier has been crossed. The likes of Siraj, Harshit Rana and Akash Deep for that matter have not been able to instill discomfort in the Australian top or middle order in the way Bumrah has been able to.
Although, India’s batting has not been at its best after the Perth Test it is still expected to come good at the Melbourne Cricket Ground
(MCG) and in Sydney, two grounds where Indian batsmen feel bit more comfortable as compared to other Australian grounds.
The bowling will be the key as taking 20 wickets is what really counts when it comes to winning a Test match and right now its a concern.
India’s batting mainstay at No 3 for almost a decade, Cheteshwar Pujara expressed his reservations about India’s bowling going into the Boxing Day Test.
“My biggest question and the reason for a little bit of concern is that the Indian bowling is looking a little weak. Batting is a little better, like the top five didn’t do well but the middle order and lower middle order, Ravindra Jadeja, Nitesh and even tailenders Bumrah and Akashdeep contributed with the bat. Now there is a weakness in the bowling, so what will you feed the team?..That is the biggest question, because you can’t drop Nitish, you can’t drop Jadeja, so what will be the team combination?..Ashwin has taken retirement, so two spinners,” he added.
India will certainly hope that the likes of Siraj, Akash Deep or Rana or the spinners will fire to assist Bumrah as the visitors go ahead in pursuit of retaining the Border-Gavaskar Trophy.
