Jasprit Bumrah who is set to return to the Indian lineup against England for the 3rd Test at Lord’s was in a mood to banter during their practice sessions. And his target was Shardul Thakur. Shardul playfully touched Bumrah’s feet and the two India players started pulling each other’s legs.
“Dekho, Lord’s, Lord (Lord is at Lord’s),” Bumrah said poking fun at Shardul’s nickname in a video released by the BCCI. To which, Thakur said, “Tabhi Jasprit Bumrah ke pair padhne padhte hain. (That is why I am touching Bumrah’s feet). To this Bumrah said, “Ye unka badhappan hain. Main inkse saath khada hua ki main jeet gaya (That’s his greatness. (I already won when I stood next to him),” Bumrah replied.
Bumrah, who was not included in the 2nd Test against England at Edgbaston due to his workload management, witnessed his side thrash England by 336 runs with Mohammed Siraj and Akash Deep stepping up in his stead.
Now he in-form Indian batters will back themselves to succeed on a potentially challenging surface while the bowling attack, which did not inspire confidence in the first game, will pose a tougher test to an unsettled England with the return of Bumrah on Thursday.
With the series nicely poised at 1-1 going into the third Test, the narrative built around both the teams has changed significantly following India’s 336-run routing of England at Edgbaston. If it wasn’t for the dropped catches and lower-order collapses at Leeds, India would have been 2-0 up in the five-match series.
The only expected change in India’s playing eleven will be Bumrah coming in place of Prasidh Krishna. Serious question marks were raised over the efficacy of the Indian pacers after Leeds but the trio of Akash Deep, Mohammed Siraj and Bumrah gives a potent look to the attack.
“The series is stuck at 1-1 at the moment, but the best bowlers in the series have been from India. Bumrah is by far better than anybody else on show, but the way Akash Deep bowled the last Test and Siraj, they were outstanding and that’s a huge, huge bonus for India to have three seamers, who can take wickets. That is a concern for England at the moment,” former England pacer Darren Gough told PTI.
(With agency inputs)
