He caught the first valid ball at point in that match against Pakistan. Saim Ayub sent it directly at him while attempting a cut shot. Bumrah, whose bowling angles have been the foundation of his career, was now the catcher of one.
He was merely manning the point region, a fielding position more frequently associated with the athleticism of Yuvraj Singh, Mohammad Kaif, Suresh Raina, and Ravindra Jadeja than with India’s top fast bowler. He wasn’t running in, getting ready for one of his yorkers, or even shadow-practicing his short, staccato run-up.
The event reappeared two days later at the ICC Cricket Academy in Dubai. T Dilip, the fielding instructor, pulled him over for a drill during practice. “Ab toh point ka fielder ho gaya hoon main!” argued Bumrah in jest. (I now play point field.)
Dilip made him do it despite his laughter. The exercise was straightforward: protect the space between two cone sets. Bumrah avoided most of the low catches that others had to dive for. Dilip abruptly interrupted his session by saying, “I don’t want to stretch you.”
In the nets, India doesn’t put too much pressure on Bumrah. That is kept for the games.
On Tuesday, September 16, Bumrah bowled to Sanju Samson, gradually lengthening his run-up until it was full, before honing his fielding techniques. Samson was one of the first in this time, even though he typically bats late in this event. His stay was short. And crisp Bumrah’s overs.
On the sidelines, a few of the players conducted Bronco tests around him. When the heat and humidity of Dubai eventually got to Rinku Singh, Axar Patel, Jitesh Sharma, and Tilak Varma, they finished the 60-meter sprints and took off their shirts.
Pakistan had shown up for their own session on the ICC Academy’s adjacent pitch. Saim Ayub faced Haris Rauf in one of their centre nets, slashing at wide and short balls. The cut shot that had fallen into Bumrah’s hands at point two nights prior was the same one he had played against India. As stated on the scorecard, “c Bumrah b Pandya.” Ayub was now repeatedly rehearsing the shot, seemingly in an attempt to get it just right.
However, Bumrah’s significance in this Asia Cup goes beyond his ability to catch at point or serve as India’s only front-line seamer. He has been deployed more aggressively up front and in a different way. He bowled three overs inside the PowerPlay against the UAE, his first T20I appearance since 2016, when he was still making his debut for India. Then, against Pakistan, he bowled three within the first six overs.
After the Pakistan game, captain Suryakumar Yadav remarked, “Up until today, we’ve [mostly] bowled him two overs in the powerplay, he hasn’t bowled three in the powerplay [recently].” “Using him as an attacking option makes us very delighted. We can then have a nice buffer for all the spinners to come over and lighten our workload if he takes two wickets, even if he bowls a tight spell of three overs.”
Preparation is just as important as wickets. India is making space for Hardik Pandya and Shivam Dube to bowl the harder overs at the tail end by bowling out more of Bumrah early. This experience could be important if they want to use the same lineup for the T20 World Cup.
Adding, “He’s very happy with it [bowling 3 overs upfront],” Suryakumar said. “If he needs to bowl just two overs in a few days, he will do so, but at least the management and I want to use him as an offensive option. That provides a solid framework for players like Shivam Dube and Hardik Pandya to raise their hands and bowl important overs both in the middle and in the end. We are therefore rather pleased with that.
It hasn’t all gone smoothly. In addition to scoring just 16 runs in his three overs against Pakistan, Bumrah let two sixes from Sahibzada Farhan, the first sixes he had ever given up to them in Twenty20 Internationals.
India is tinkering with that equilibrium. to support their spinners, Pandya and Dube, to end games after using up three of Bumrah’s four overs during the PowerPlay. It is daring and dangerous, and tighter finishes will be the true test of it. In this Asia Cup, India has yet to defend a target.
Bumrah has been everywhere thus far, holding India’s balance, fielding at point, bowling new-ball overs, and making jokes with Dilip. He is supposed to cover the most territory while also being their most protected player. A versatile player that India consistently relies on, he is a bowler at heart and a catcher at point.
He chuckled and remarked, “So many cameras?” as he saw the BCCI cameraman and the reporters gathering around him as he was leaving for his fielding session in Dubai. He must have been reminded once more by that moment that he is not only a bowler who is in the spotlight at point, but also at every other point.
India
