‘Didn’t meet expectations’ – Irfan Pathan criticizes Bumrah’s ‘pick-and-choose’ approach

Irfan Pathan, a former Indian cricket player, explained why he gave Jasprit Bumrah’s performances in the just finished five-Test series against England a score of 6/10. In the most recent series against England, Bumrah participated in three of the five Test matches while being rested for the other two.

Despite being expected to, Irfan believed Jasprit Bumrah did not contribute enough as a senior team member.

“Bumrah will receive a perfect score. Why? The reason for this is because winning matches is a big part of being a senior player. India lost all three Test matches in which he participated. There were times, such as the third Test, when a sixth over was required; Irfan discussed this during commentary as well,” he said in a video posted on his YouTube page.

Irfan Pathan expressed disapproval of Jasprit Bumrah overall usage throughout the series.

“Bumrah bowled five overs in the Lord’s Test, and he had dismissed Joe Root eleven times. The sixth over was the only one that could have been more aggressive. There, I thought he held back a bit. Additionally, there was pick-and-choose, which I’ve always opposed, and that was evident as well,” he continued.

Irfan highlights Bumrah’s lacklustre performance in the second half of the first Test.

In the series-opening match at Headingley, the former Indian cricket player believed that Bumrah did not put enough pressure on the right-arm pacer, who went wicketless in the second innings’ 19 overs.

“Let’s revisit the initial test. He didn’t collect a single wicket in the second innings, despite taking five in the first. It is up to your major match-winner to find a way to generate pressure, whether it be over the wicket, around the wicket, yorkers, slower balls, or bouncers, at that critical moment when he is expected to step up and win the game. We did not witness the development of that pressure during the Leeds Test. In the end, England scored a lot.

It’s interesting to note that Bumrah missed both of India’s series victories. By winning the final game at the Oval by an exciting six-run margin, they ultimately kept the Anderson-Tendulkar Trophy.