Former fast bowler Brett Lee feels today’s pacers lack the yorker mastery of Jasprit Bumrah. Lee, emphasizing the effectiveness of the delivery, believes bowlers are neglecting yorkers in the crucial death overs, leading to higher run rates. He urges bowlers to prioritize this skill and emulate Bumrah’s death-bowling dominance.
Reflecting on 17 years of the Indian Premier League, Brett Lee emphasized the efficacy of yorkers. “On average, a yorker goes for a strike rate of less than 100. This tells me that a well-executed yorker generally results in one run or less per delivery. Now, when you bowl a yorker and you’ve got guys who can scoop you over their heads, that puts pressure on you as a bowler. You’ve got to set the right field, put two men back, third man fine and back, and then bowl,” Lee added.
As T20 cricket evolves, the game increasingly favours the batters. With rules like the ‘Impact Player Rule’ and flat pitches, bowlers faced significant challenges in the IPL. Like many former players, Brett Lee called for a better balance between bat and ball.
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“I’m all for batters hitting the ball all over, but there has to be something for the bowlers too. I’m not asking for a green top where teams get bowled out for 110 because that’s not good for cricket either. You want a good total. Anywhere around that 185 to 230 mark is a good score. But we’ve seen scores of 265, 270, 277. It’s really hard because most bowlers are now going for 45 to 50 runs off their four overs,” Brett Lee said.
Australia’s young batter Jake Fraser-McGurk dazzled in his debut IPL season, prompting many to call for his inclusion in Australia’s T20 World Cup squad. However, selectors opted for veteran opener David Warner, who is set to retire after the tournament, along with Travis Head and Mitchell Marsh in the top order. McGurk, a top-order batter and Warner’s teammate at Delhi Capitals, has been named as a travelling reserve.
“David Warner has earned the right to go out on his own terms. If things don’t work out for whatever reason, then McGurk is definitely there to step in,” Brett Lee commented.
Despite Warner’s uneven IPL performance, where he missed several matches due to injury, he has amassed 834 runs in T20 cricket since 2021 at a strike rate of around 150. Warner’s form was questionable before the 2021 T20 World Cup, yet he ended up as the player of the tournament, playing a crucial role in Australia’s first World Cup win in the shortest format.
In contrast, the 22-year-old McGurk, who joined Delhi Capitals as a replacement for Lungi Ngidi, showcased explosive batting, smashing four half-centuries in nine games at a strike rate exceeding 234.
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“If you go over there as a reserve batsman, you definitely have a chance to get an opportunity. That happened this year with the Delhi Capitals. He wasn’t even picked in the squad. Ricky Ponting called him late at night and asked him to join due to injuries. So, right time, right place. But the advice to him is to take it easy. He’s only 22 years old. He’s got time. There’s no point rushing it,” Brett Lee concluded.
This nuanced analysis highlights Brett Lee’s insights on yorker usage in T20 cricket, the evolution of the game favoring batsmen, and the promising future of young talent like Jake Fraser-McGurk.
