Birthday special: Jasprit Bumrah – Lesser-known facts about the Indian pacer
India’s pace sensation Jasprit Bumrah will turn 29 on December 6, 2022. The entire Indian cricket team and fans from all over the world are waiting for the speedster to return to the national side. Bumrah faced an injury that ruled him out of the Asia Cup 2022. He returned for the home series against Australia but injury concerns ruled him out of the T20 World Cup.
He made his international debut in 2016 and has become a key player for India across all formats. Having played 60 T20Is, 72 ODIs and 30 Tests, he has picked up 70, 121 and 128 wickets in the three formats respectively. His numbers in T20s are brilliant, and he has been a force to reckon with in the white-ball format. Bumrah, known for his destructive yorkers, will be eager to get back into the side and continue to showcase his dominance to the world.
On that note, let us have a look at some lesser-known facts about the Indian pacer:
Hit by misfortune
Bumrah lost his father at the young age of seven. He was raised by his mother single-handedly and made his entire family proud by achieving immense success while representing India at the highest level.
A Debut to Remember
Bumrah engaged in the game at an early stage but started working hard at the age of 14. He made his debut for Gujarat and played his first game against Vidarbha in the 2013-14 domestic season for the state. In his maiden game, he picked up seven wickets and went on to finish the season as the team’s highest wicket-taker.
Find of the season
It was under the captaincy of the legendary MS Dhoni that Bumrah debuted. In his first-ever international game against Australia, back in January 2016, he recorded figures of 2/40 in 10 overs and earned praises from the then-skipper Dhoni, who dubbed him as the “Find of the season”.
John Wright found India a rare gemstone
Bumrah was first spotted by former Indian coach John Wright. He saw the pacer during one of the seasons of the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy. Bumrah then made his IPL debut for Mumbai Indians when Wright was a part of the team’s coaching setup. And the rest is history.
International Debut on international soil
Jasprit Bumrah is one of the few players who have made their debut across all formats away from home. He made his ODI debut on January 23, 2016, at the Sydney Cricket Ground in Australia. Bumrah then debuted in T20Is in the same series, on January 26, in Adelaide. He made his Test debut against South Africa in January 2018 in Cape Town.
