Former Indian player Abhishek Nayar was happy to see India speedster Jasprit Bumrah in rhythm during the first T20I against Ireland in Dublin on Friday. Nayar added that it was heartening to see him bring out all the variations in his repertoire. Bumrah, playing as captain in his first match since September 2022, did well since the beginning. He took the new ball, dismissing Andy Balbirnie and Lorcan Tucker in the opening over of the innings to set things up for India.
Speaking on Jio Cinema, he said: “Good to see Bumrah back, all cylinders firing. You didn’t see the best of Bumrah, but you did see all the variations that you will always associate with Bumrah. That’s always heartening. You saw he was clocking around the 140kph toward the end of his spell, getting his rhythm. Seeing him bowl the off-cutters, the hard lengths and the yorkers, it’s the ideal way for Bumrah to get back to his rhythm.”
However, Nayar also predicted that Jasprit Bumrah’s pace would only increase with time and felt he did a great job overall. India beat Ireland out by two runs via the DLS method to go 1-0 up in the series as well.
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“I noticed one thing, his run-up has gone a bit longer,” he said. “But the way he ran in to bowl, it seems as if he is in a very good rhythm. He ran at very good pace and even the follow-through was very good. I think the pace, it will increase as he plays more matches. All in all, I am very happy with Bumrah, the bowler and the captain.”
Meanwhile, Abhishek Nayar said Prasidh Krishna can become an all-format bowler for India if he is managed properly as well. Krishna registered figures of 2/32 in four overs as India restricted Ireland to a modest total of 139/7 in the first T20I in Malahide, Dublin, on Friday, August 18 as well. On the other hand, India registered a two-run win via the DLS method, with rain ending the game prematurely on 47/2 after 6.5 overs.
He stated: “If you see Prasidh Krishna’s graph, you don’t have bowlers like him. You don’t have bowlers who can play all three formats. I feel the selectors and management have always identified him as someone who can do that. He likes to play Ranji Trophy. He enjoys bowling with the red ball. We have already seen how he has bowled in ODIs. We know how he does in T20s based on the IPL. He is a bowler who wants to play all three formats, it’s not that he wants to play only ODIs or T20Is.”
Krishna, meanwhile, has picked up 25 wickets at an impressive average of 23.92 in 14 ODIs. However, he is yet to make his Test debut but he has claimed 49 dismissals at an exceptional average of 17.61 in 11 first-class games as well. He has picked up 109 wickets in 64 List-A games so far as well.
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“Can that workload be managed? I always have just one question for an Indian fast bowler – whether the workload management can happen because our fast bowlers play the IPL. When you play the IPL and you are playing 14 games and could be plus two or three, it means you are not getting an off-season. So I feel that Prasidh Krishna or Jasprit Bumrah, your three-format players, have to be looked after to a level where he can play all formats but when are you going to use him and in which tournaments are you going to use him and how smartly are you going to use him, and that for me is the key,” Abhishek Nayar concluded.
