'He is a crowned jewel of Indian cricket. He is the Kohinoor diamond of Indian cricket. Let him say whatever he wants. After Kapil Dev, has there been an Indian bowler bigger than Bumrah?'
Indian veteran all-rounder Ravichandran Ashwin lauded pace spearhead Jasprit Bumrah, calling him the "Kohinoor of Indian Cricket."
Bumrah was one of the stars of India's win in the first Test against Bangladesh, taking a total of five wickets, including a four-wicket haul in the first inning. Ever since his return to international cricket in 2023 ahead of the 50-over World Cup after a long while of battling injuries, Bumrah has been unplayable, delivering some of the best spells in recent memory.
Since his return to international cricket in August last year, Bumrah has been the leading wicket-taker across all formats with 83 scalps in 34 games at an average of 15.43 and best figures of 6/45.
He has taken two five-wicket hauls and delivered incredibly well during the Cricket World Cup 2023 (20 wickets in 11 games at an average of 18.65, fourth-highest wicket-taker), Indian Premier League (IPL) 2024 (20 wickets in 13 matches at an average of 16.80, third-highest wicket-taker) and the ICC T20 World Cup 2024 (15 wickets in eight matches at an average of 11.86, second-highest wicket-taker and Player of the Tournament).
Speaking on his Hindi Youtube Channel, Ashwin hit back at people for trolling Bumrah for declaring himself as the "fittest" player in the team recently at an event, saying that the pacer can say whatever he wants to.
"Jasprit Bumrah is a fast bowler. He keeps bowling 145 km/h. He is a crowned jewel of Indian cricket. He is the Kohinoor diamond of Indian cricket. Let him say whatever he wants. After Kapil Dev, has there been an Indian bowler bigger than Bumrah?," said Ashwin on his channel.
The veteran all-rounder urged people to give Bumrah some credit for being able to maintain his fast bowling speed after coming back from a stress fracture and went on to compare fast bowlers to a "tipper lorry".
"People want to say that he got injured, how is he the fittest cricketer? There is a lot of difference. One is a tipper lorry and one is a Mercedes-Benz. Mercedes-Benz can be driven carefully, it's chauffeur-driven. Tipper Lorry has to move from north to south with so much load. A fast bowler is a tipper lorry, they will break down. He has come back from a stress fracture and is bowling at 145 km/h. Give him credit," Ashwin added.
The Chennai Test, the first of India's 10-match run in the upcoming season, provided a significant boost of confidence for Gambhir and his support staff.
The second Test will be played in Kanpur from September 27 onwards.
