IPL 2016: Suresh Raina says Jasprit Bumrah was always "Team India material"

India’s middle-order batsman Suresh Raina, who is currently leading the Gujarat Lions side in the IPL 2016, feels India’s new pace sensation Jasprit Bumrah was always “Team India material” and he has also named other youngsters who have impressed him.

Raina, one of the most successful players in the IPL, is doing a great job for his new franchise as Gujarat Lions is sitting pretty at the top of the IPL standings after registering five wins in the six games they have played so far.

In a recent interview with the Times of India, Raina named the youngsters who have impressed him, “Shreyas Iyer is one. Jasprit Bumrah was always Team India material. Krunal Pandya and Suryakumar Yadav are a few others”.

Bumrah has impressed with his recent performances in the Asia Cup as well as in the ICC T20 World Cup 2016. He has a knack of bowling yorkers at will and he seems to have solved the age-old problem of bowling at the death for India. His accurate yorkers are hard to get away and he is quite deceptive as well.

The southpaw also pointed out the learnings that a budding cricketer can acquire from the lucrative league saying, “IPL helps a lot. It teaches a lot...way of living, way of training, how to look after your body, what to eat, when to sleep. It even teaches man-management skills. You can even learn that from people like Shahrukh Khan, Preity Zinta... how they go about their glamorous life, how they act with their fans. Man-management and time management skills must be learnt before coming to the IPL. The tournament is all about that.... how to remain fresh and motivated before a game.”

Suresh Raina, who previously played for the Chennai Super Kings in the IPL, is the highest run-getter in the tournament’s history with 3875 runs with an average of 33.99. He has also won two IPL trophies with his former franchise in 2010 and 2011.

When he was asked to assess his performance as a captain this season, the Gujarat Lions skipper replied, “I have got this responsibility. I have to perform for my players. I have played with most of my players at Chennai Super Kings. We have 5-6 players who have performed well in IPL. Brad Hodge, Dwayne Bravo... these players are aware of my nature. They have played so much in India. It helps to have a set combination if the players respond to the captain. I have never missed even an optional practice session so I can give my players more time.”

Comparison with Dhoni

During his CSK days, he shared a great bond with MS Dhoni. When asked about the differences between his and Dhoni’s captaincy. the Raina said, “You need to ask the players about this. How would I know? (Laughs) I can see what's important for the game. First you need to think about the team and be selfless. For whichever team I have played so far, I told myself that I am the captain on the field. That approach helped me.”

Raina also dropped a hint that he might play county cricket in England after his wife’s delivery, when asked about whether Test cricket is still the real deal. He pointed out, “Test cricket is obviously important. We have our first-class and Test season later on in the year. To do well there, I will also be trying for a county stint after my wife's delivery. Cricket is also about entertainment but I have always believed in Test cricket.”

However, the talented batsman wants to perform well in the format that he is currently playing in and is keen to do well in the IPL 2016.