India vs England: “Do Not Know About The Extent Of The Injury”: Jasprit Bumrah On Virat Kohli’s Groin Strain

Jasprit Bumrah produced one of the finest spells by an Indian cricketer ever as he returned with figures of 6-19 in 7.2 overs against England in the first ODI of the three-match series on Tuesday. As a result of his show, the Jos Buttler-led side was bundled out for 110. Team India then registered a comprehensive win by 10 wickets as Rohit Sharma and Shikhar Dhawan played unbeaten knocks of 76 and 31 respectively. During the match, former England captain Nasser Hussain on air said that Bumrah is the best all-format bowler in the world right now, and some minutes later, even Sachin Tendulkar made the same point on Twitter.

Bumrah, while speaking to reporters after the game during a press conference, said that he never gets carried away with applause or criticism. “See, it was a good day and then you get applauded. But I am a type of person who does not get carried away by applause and criticism. Today was a good day, but I do not think about where I am at in each format, I always focus on trying to do what I can do. Very grateful for the applause you get, but I always try to keep a stable head,” said Bumrah.

“I always like to stay in the present, these days there is outside noise, too many opinions. There can be confusion that can get created, so I try to focus on my own evaluation and my preparation. If I tick all the boxes, what I can do, I do that and I accept the result that comes after. I try to remain consistent and that gives me stability,” he added.

Former skipper Virat Kohli did not play the first ODI due to a minor groin strain. When asked about the status of Virat Kohli’s fitness status, Bumrah said: “I do not know about the extent of the injury as I did not play the last game. Hopefully, he will be fine by the next time and I really don’t know the status of his injury.”

When asked about his partnership with Mohammed Shami as a bowling duo, Bumrah said: “Communication is always there when I and Shami bowl in tandem. We started talking today, and we realised that the ball was swinging today, he is an experienced bowler. When a pair compliments one another, it is a very good thing. He is a very skillful bowler and he has been playing for India for a very long time. I enjoy bowling with him. We keep on having conversations in the middle, he is a very skillful bowler.”

“It is important that there is a true wicket so that every player is in the game and there is a fair competition and in the end, it becomes a matter of skill. When the ball was getting soft, it was getting easier to bat. But we got wickets with the new ball and it worked out well for us,” he added.

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Talking about the international cricket calendar, the pacer said: “It is difficult, we were playing a Test match five days ago, then we played T20Is and now we are playing ODIs. It is important to stay fresh and look after your body. You have to sleep well because you need to recover. Fast-bowling is a tough job, there is a lot of strain on your body. We are professional cricketers and it was our dream to play for India. We are now getting to do that so we cannot complain. We need to give our best, we do everything possible to stay fresh. It is a challenge, but we do whatever we can.”

“It is not like that you pick and choose games. If it’s a World Cup, then you prioritise the format accordingly. World Test Championship final is there, so you try to play more Tests. You just need to be aware of which series are coming, there was a break because of COVID so we have played continuously after that. Being fresh is important, we talk with the team management and then we decide which format we need to prioritise.”