I’m a huge Mohammed Shami fan; India feeling Jasprit Bumrah’s absence: Jason Gillespie | Cricket News – Times of India
Team India has been deprived of Bumrah’s services since September last year when he withdrew from the home T20Is against South Africa after participating in two games against Australia. His recurring back injury caused him to miss both the Asia Cup in the UAE which was played in the T20 format and the Men’s T20 World Cup in Australia. His absence was sorely felt as India suffered a disheartening 10-wicket loss to England in the semi-finals of the T20 World Cup.
(Photo by Gareth Copley/Getty Images)
Earlier this year, Bumrah attempted a comeback during the ODI series against Sri Lanka in January. However, he was withdrawn just before the series opener in Guwahati, with the BCCI citing the need for him to regain full bowling fitness, and the decision was taken as a precautionary measure.
Bumrah subsequently underwent back surgery in New Zealand in March and has been on the road to recovery at the National Cricket Academy (NCA) in Bengaluru.
With the Asia Cup now around the corner and the ODI World Cup less than 3 months away, the Indian team management will be hoping that Bumrah and his toe-crushing yorkers manage to bolster their pace attack.
Jason Gillespie. (Photo by Francois Nel/Getty Images)
Former Australian pacer Jason Gillespie believes Team India is missing Bumrah and that they will need him for the upcoming mega tournaments, particularly the all-important ICC ODI World Cup. Gillespie spoke to TimesofIndia.com in June this year about a variety of different cricketing topics.
“I think his (Bumrah’s) absence is being felt. Because he’s one of the best bowlers in the world. Anytime a team is missing one of their best bowlers, it’s going to have an effect on them. India definitely missed him. He’s an immense bowler. He’s a big tall man. He hits the pitch hard. He’s a different style of bowler. From all the feedback I’ve heard from batsmen around the world, he hits the bat a lot. He’s quicker than a lot of people than the speed gun suggests,” Gillespie told TimesofIndia.com in an exclusive interview.
“He (Bumrah) hits the bat a lot harder and a lot higher than you expect. Those sort of bowlers are gold-dust and his record, for the amount of games he’s played, is quite immense. His absence is being felt in Team India. Hopefully, he’ll be back in the park really soon because we all want to see the best players playing. Bumrah is a wonderful bowler and we would love to see him on the park soon,” Gillespie, a veteran of 71 Tests, 97 ODIs, and 1 T20I, with more than 400 international wickets under his belt, further told TimesofIndia.com.
The former Australia pacer, who played 22 international matches vs India (all formats) and has 62 wickets against the Men in Blue, also spoke highly of India’s pace arsenal.
Shardul Thakur and Mohammed Shami have in particular caught his attention with their impressive performances in recent times.
(Photo by Ryan Pierse/Getty Images)
“I actually quite like Shardul Thakur. I know he’s an all-rounder, but if he can swing the ball consistently, he can be a very useful bowler for India. I’m a huge, huge fan of Mohammed Shami. He is a wonderful bowler. The wrist position he gets when he releases the ball and the seam position as it’s coming down the wicket is just fantastic. He gives himself every chance to swing the ball. He bowls a really disciplined line and length.”
“These two (Shami and Shardul) impressed me. Siraj is doing well. He’s still obviously a very young player and learning. He’ll just get better and better. I think the more cricket he plays, it will be better for him. India just needs to hold tight with him (Siraj) and give him a lot of love and support and back him up. Just give him lots of different cricketing experiences and lots of different surfaces, so he can learn and develop his bowling,” Gillespie signed off.
