Gill blunt on whether Bumrah will play Lord's Test after Akash, Siraj run riot: 'Jab do bowlers 17 wickets lete hain...'
Shubman Gill revealed whether Jasprit Bumrah will play the 3rd India vs England Test at Lord's starting Thursday.
In the absence of Jasprit Bumrah, Akash Deep and Mohammed Siraj emerged powerhouses, grabbing a combined 16 wickets between them as India beat England by 366 runs to register their first-ever Test victory at Edgbaston. Siraj was the star with the ball in the first innings, finishing with 6/70, ably supported by Akash's 4/88. Having missed out on a five-wicket haul in the first innings, it was Akash's turn to haunt England, as he took 6/90 in the second innings, while Siraj picked up one. Overall, to sum up, India did something nobody expected them to – fast bowlers rising up with Bumrah gone. At least that's what the pattern was in Australia a few months ago and at Leeds.
So, when India finally got over the line, the inevitable question asked of the winning captain, Shubman Gill, was 'Will Jasprit Bumrah play at Lord's? To be fair, it wasn’t even a question. The answer was already known. The reason why Bumrah didn’t play at Edgbaston was that he was set to return at Lord’s. So when Gill confirmed Bumrah's availability for the next game starting Thursday, it was merely a formality.
Gill promises Bumrah return
"Definitely,” he said when asked by Michael Atherton during the post-match presentation ceremony. Gill was asked this question twice more – once by veteran India batter Cheteshwar Pujara. His answer didn’t change, although he did reserve high praise for Akash and Siraj.
“It was impressive. Jab aapke do fast bowlers 17 wickets lete hain, toh captaincy easy ho jati hai. (When two of your pacers combine to take 17 wickets, captaincy becomes easy.) [Jasprit] Bumrah didn’t play in this match, but I think India has enough talent. The players that we have slotted in the squad are out country’s best bowlers. And they all hold the capability to take 20 wickets in any condition."
