The last time Jasprit Bumrah was playing for India, well, West Indies were dancing to his tune. His 6/27 broke the back of the Windies batting and it was a devastating spell. Not that this comes as a surprise. Just look at his record - 62 wickets in 12 Tests, 103 victims in 58 ODIs and 51 scalps in 42 T20Is. That is ample proof of him being a wicket-taking machine.
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But then disaster struck when he was out of action due to lower back stress, meaning it will be some time before he is bowling again. But get this, he won't be able to just walk into the side and take his place for granted. Why? Because he's got competition.?
We have a firing Mohammed Shami, a resurgent Umesh Yadav and not to mention Ishant Sharma in the reserves. All of them are bowling well and the odds of Bumrah just being considered out of the blue are pretty bleak.
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So imagine this, our premier pacer actually had to earn his place back in the side? Well, it is a good thing. The problem of plenty is one we all love to have and India are reaping the benefits of it. If someone like Bumrah cannot make it into the side, that means our team is pretty good. The home series vs South Africa is yet another proof of this.
Let's be honest, we have a bowling attack that can operate successfully in any conditions. Bumrah is our pace spearhead but even without him we do have people to back us up. This means someone needs to get injured, under-perform or Bumrah needs to produce some exceptional domestic performances in order for him to return to the side.
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The 2020 World T20 is less that a year away and Bumrah is expected to be in the side. But he certainly has his work cut out for him as he looks to get fit and make it back as soon as possible.?