Jasprit Bumrah: The 'different' boy who never gave up

TimesofIndia.com in Mumbai: It was a pleasant October afternoon in Delhi and Jasprit Bumrah was continuously coughing while fielding at deep fine-leg for Gujarat. The opponents were Railways and the venue hosting that Ranji Trophy clash was the Karnail Singh Stadium. Only a handful of people watched that First Class fixture and appreciated the red-ball masterclass from the "mystery" bowler, despite being under the weather. He told this reporter about his ill health, which was surprising as without the respiratory ailment, it would have been impossible to tell he wasn't 100%. Across the two innings, he bowled 30.4 overs, took seven wickets, and demonstrated the ability to stand out in a line-up which also featured current selector RP Singh, who was playing as a guest player.

Bumrah's name wasn't unknown in that 2015-16 season as he had already landed an IPL contract with the Mumbai Indians in 2013 and made 17 appearances for the mighty franchise before playing for Gujarat in the domestic circuit. He featured in eight games in 2015, returning with 21 wickets after bowling 200.2 overs for the Parthiv Patel-led unit. His domestic performance set him up nicely to become a regular in the Mumbai Indians XI, and he slowly became the franchise's banker in the cash-rich league.




However, it was the 2012-13 season that put Bumrah on the map and on everyone's radar. John Wright became Mumbai Indians' head coach in 2013 and served them for two seasons but it was his role as a scout which unearthed the gem, a diamond, for the franchise and Indian cricket. During one of his many field trips, the former India coach watched a 2012-13 Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy fixture where a young bowler with a different action and an insane ability to drill yorkers caught his attention.

"I saw Bumrah when I went to to Ahmedabad and I was watching Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy. And just by chance, I watched the last few overs of a game between Gujarat and Mumbai. Bumrah bowled two overs and he tried to bowl a yorker every ball. He had pace and that was unusual and he had an interesting, different action. I asked Parthiv Patel because he was captain of Gujarat and he gave him a glowing endorsement.

"So it's a bit of luck. It's a bit of coincidence. Bumrah was interesting because he was different. He had a different action and he was quick. And I'd never seen anyone try and bowl 12 yorkers in a row anywhere," recalled Wright in a chat with TimesofIndia.com.

It was love at first sight and Wright instantly called Rahul Sanghvi, who has been with the franchise since 2008 donning many hats. Things progressed, and the Mumbai Indians got him on board. "It happened really quickly. I called Rahul Sanghvi and we'd sign him the next morning," said Wright.

Wright knew he had picked someone really special, and different, but he received real assurance after the great Sachin Tendulkar faced Bumrah during one of the side's net sessions and found him "really difficult to pick."

"Sachin was batting first in the nets and I made Jasprit bowl. I said, 'Jasprit, I want you to bowl to Sachin'. We had three or four bowlers in the fast bowlers nets. And I'll never forget, after Sachin had his net, he came to me. And he said, 'John, who is that guy over there?' And I said, 'it's Bumrah and we have just signed him.' And he said, 'John, he's really hard to pick.' I nearly jumped for joy then because when he said that, I thought, that's great. He's got a difficult action to pick up and Sachin spotted it immediately," said Wright.

This was enough for the New Zealander to fast-track Bumrah into the Playing XI setup. While he didn't play all games in the first three seasons, his development occurred at a rapid pace, and the Mumbai Indians were patient enough to see his evolution.

"Jasprit only played two games that year and not all games next two seasons... It took a while for him. But, you know, people forget that he's only 18 or 19. And the road to being, you know, a performer, a consistent performer, is going to take a little bit of time," added Wright.

Mumbai Indians won titles in 2013 and 2015 but it was in 2016 that Bumrah hit his stride and never looked back. For every season since that year, he remained among the wicket-takers, and his season economy never touched the 8-run mark. Three more titles came in 2017, 2019 and 2020 with Bumrah playing the leading role.

During those golden years for the IPL franchise, Bumrah became too valuable a property for national selectors to ignore. He was drafted into the white-ball setup and made his T20I and ODI debuts in Australia during the 2016 season. And then came the unexpected Test call when then head coach Ravi Shastri and captain Virat Kohli unleashed him with the red cherry against South Africa in South Africa in 2018. The transition to red ball cricket stood out for Wright and he still remembers the "fantastic spell" he bowled against England at Trent Bridge.

"I remember watching India play when Bumrah first toured England with the Test team. I was watching it on television. I wasn't at the match. But he would bowl a fantastic spell at Trent Bridge. And I thought, 'Wow, that's great.' Because he's made that transition from limited over cricket to Test cricket. I was in Derbyshire. I was doing some of the coaching work there. He had a great tour. Then he'd taken his game not only to the limited over level, but to the Test level. And that's great. Because, you know, whoever was working with him and however he was thinking, I mean, he's a very intelligent kid. And modest. And, you just feel happy for the guy that they're doing well," said Wright.

In between those appearances across formats, and in the IPL, Bumrah battled back issues and he ultimately underwent surgery in March 2023. The critics, always skeptical of his 'different' bowling option and the load it puts on his back, had their swords out and wrote off a comeback. They said it was impossible, but Bumrah was not going to give up. He missed a lot of cricket after surgery but returned to have a brilliant 2023 ODi World Cup campaign, followed by the Border Gavaskar Trophy in Australia. The back issue resurfaced in the final Test in Sydney, forcing him to miss the Champions Trophy, but he returned again.

The 2024 T20 World Cup win in the Caribbean followed. While others kept questioning and wondering, Bumrah slowly beefed up his trophy cabinet which now includes five IPL titles and one T20 World Cup. In his 234 appearances for the country across formats, the bowler with the "different action" has consistently made the difference. He had read and seen many opinions around him and his longevity but remained mum for most of the period. In the last few years, that has changed.

During a press-conference after he picked up a five-wicket haul against England in Leeds last year, Bumrah hit back at critics who gave him only six, or at max eight months.

"They said I’d last only six months, then eight months. But playing and playing, I’m now close to completing ten years in international cricket. It’s been twelve or thirteen years that I’ve played in the IPL. Even now, people say the same things -- ‘Now he’ll go, now he’ll retire.’ Let them keep waiting. I’m not thinking about all that. I’ll keep doing my work. Every three or four months, people say, ‘Now he’ll go, now he’ll go.’ Let’s see," Bumrah had said.

"I’ll keep playing for as long as God has written it for me. I prepare my best, and after that, I leave it up to God. With all the blessings He has given me, I try to carry them forward. I try to take Indian cricket forward too," he added.

In the ongoing T20 World Cup, he has been the team's real impact bowler; Suryakumar Yadav has used him in different phases because he can ace any role to perfection. There are occasions when the scoreboard readings wouldn't attract the praise and laurels but Bumrah operates on impact, and nobody does it better than him.

More than ten years after that pleasant afternoon in Delhi, Bumrah has elevated his skill-set to dangerous levels. He remains a prized possession and a polished diamond that isn't losing its shine. If you ask a precious stone nerd, he would immediately label Bumrah as a diamond of D colour and IF clarity. And this one isn't lab-grown, it's meticulously polished after years of grind.


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