ICC T20 World Cup 2022: 'The kind of bowler Bumrah is, certainly it's a big loss' - Bhuvneshwar
Jasprit Bumrah is not featuring for India in the ICC T20 World Cup 2022 in Australia due to a stress-related back injury. Meanwhile, Bhuvneshwar Kumar has termed it a 'big loss' for the side.
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FollowIndian pacer Jasprit Bumrah's absence is a significant loss. Still, it doesn't mean that the current Indian bowling department would veer from its plans to over-compensate for his absence, feels senior India seamer, Bhuvneshwar Kumar. While Bumrah was ruled out of the 2022 ICC T20 World Cup due to a back stress fracture, Bhuvneshwar had endured a hard time during the 2022 Asia Cup and the subsequent bilateral series against Australia and South Africa, as his execution in death overs came under the scanner. However, the Meerut man has been in perfect tempo overall. His opening spell of penetrating swing bowling piled pressure on arch-rival Pakistan, assisting young pacer Arshdeep Singh in getting the prized wickets of Mohammed Rizwan and Babar Azam.
So, did the bowling unit do anything different to indemnify for Bumrah's absence? "The kind of bowler Bumrah is, certainly, it's a big loss for the team. It's not as if we would have to do something extra that Bumrah isn't around," Bhuvneshwar informed the media during the mixed zone.
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"Even if Bumrah would have been around, we couldn't have done those extra things. We are doing exactly what our strengths are," added Bhuvneshwar. When asked if the complaint about his Asia Cup death bowling had hurt him, having performed admirably pleasingly for India for a decade, Bhuvneshwar implied that he wasn't distracted.
"Itni saalon mein ek baar ho gayi cheezein kharab, so ho gayi. Baat khatam. [In all these years, I have had this one-off tournament. It's happened. It's done and dusted]. Media and commentators can say many things [about my death bowling], but as a team, we knew that we would have our share of ups and downs," Bhuvneshwar swore.
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"T20 is a format where it could be tough for bowlers and even batters if the track is difficult. But, since Asia Cup is a big event, people tend to assess you much more," he reckoned. Bhuvneshwar expressed that he stays away from social media during significant events. "During World Cup, I keep myself completely off social media and have no idea what all is written about. Because it's the social media from which you come to know all these things," he noted.
In the tournament opener versus Pakistan, Bhuvneshwar tormented Rizwan with his swing and said he hardly expected so much swing Down Under. "I never expected that my deliveries would swing so much. Whether Arshdeep or I got two wickets, Arshdeep and I complimented each other. So, you can say I was happy," he identified.
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Talking about Arshdeep, his face lit up. "He has been amazing since his debut. He was always asking about what kind of track will there be on offer and what kind of shots the batters will play on this track. He asks me and also Rohit and Virat. Considering his first T20 WC, he is doing well," he proclaimed.
Bhuvneshwar also established that there are no entrusted death bowlers. "There is no assigned death bowler as such. You can't plan like that in cricket, where you know your death bowlers' names even before a tourney starts. A lot of things are spontaneous, and the captain takes a call on how he assesses the situation at that very moment," he argued.
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Preparation in Perth was crucial
The Indian side had a seven-day preparatory camp in Perth, which is why it could work to the team's advantage while playing South Africa on Saturday. "The first phase of preparation when we touched down here in Perth was the most crucial one. The strategy changes with each team as batters change. We discussed and trained on the execution of plans," Bhuvneshwar demonstrated.
"If you lose a match first up in a tournament, and that against a tough team like Pakistan, it would have been difficult to make a comeback. The craze in such events is that batters go hell for leather in the back 10," counted Bhuvneshwar.
"You might feel as a bowling unit we conceded 15 to 20 more [34 in last three overs], but that has been a pattern of all teams in this World Cup. If you see most matches, teams haven't scored much in the first ten, but once the ball becomes a touch older, set batters start making runs," Bhuvneshwar concluded.
(With inputs from PTI)
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