What’s the story?
Australian bowling legend Glenn McGrath, who is in Chennai to mentor fast bowlers at the MRF pace foundation, was full of praise for Jasprit Bumrah while talking to the media.
"He is a very improved bowler and his style of bowling is perfect for shorter formats.The way he bowls at the death is impressive. In addition to a fine length, he also generates good pace. He can come up with occasional yorkers as well. He is a quality pacer and I hope he continues to improve," he said.
However, the 47-year-old also believes that Mumbai Indians bowler needs to swiftly adapt to the conditions in England so as to do well from the very first game against Pakistan. While talking about the upcoming India vs Pakistan clash, the man from Dubbo said, “It’s always a big game whenever India play Pakistan. Although not the same powerful force they once used to be, Pakistan still have some quality bowlers and an experienced batting line-up.
“You never know Pakistan might just pull off a surprise on their day.”
Also read: Azhar Ali says India-Pakistan clash is just another game
In case you didn’t know...
Glenn McGrath is the director of the MRF Pace Foundation and replaced Dennis Lillee for the position in 2012. He has been consistently training pacers in the academy and says that he relishes the opportunity of shaping young talent.
The details
While talking about the Indian bowling attack, McGrath said that some bowlers have done really well in the last 2-3 years and certainly are at the top of the heap. He also believes that India have one of the most potent bowling line-ups in the tournament and their pace-spin combination will definitely give them an edge.
The three-time World Cup winner tagged Mitchell Starc as the best bowler in the world right now while lauding his pace and ability to swing the ball in both ways.
He also admires the way Ben Stokes has bounced back from the four sixes in the World T20 final last year and touts him to be an asset for the hosts. He feels that England’s progress in the tournament will be heavily reliant on the all-rounder’s overall performance.
What next?
Mcgrath has picked India, Australia, South Africa and England/New Zealand to reach the semi-final of the tournament. His prediction looks fairly safe and it will be interesting to see if a surprise team manages to grab that coveted top-4 spot.
Author’s take
The former Australian cricketer is right on money with his observations on Bumrah and is right to point out the challenges the 23-year-old will face while adapting to the swinging conditions in England.
Bumrah will be the key to India’s bowling success in the tournament and his death bowling is an ace in skipper Virat Kohli’s hands. With Umesh Yadav, Mohammad Shami and IPL purple cap winner Bhuvneshwar Kumar in the squad, choosing the seamers for the playing XI is going to be a substantial concern for the captain.
He would hope that whoever he picks that take a page out of McGrath’s book to perform well in the tournament.
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