‘He changed the momentum and it shifted towards us’: Bumrah praises teammate for taking ‘the team to safety’ at The Oval

Pacer Jasprit Bumrah said Shardul’s impact was massive, adding that having a fourth pacer in the team is always helpful.

Indian bowlers left no stone unturned to outclass the English batsmen on the final day of the Oval Test. While chasing a 368-run target, the home team surrendered to the likes of Jasprit Bumrah, Umesh Yadav, Ravindra Jadeja and Shardul Thakur, allowing Kohli & Co. to go up 2-1 in the series with a 157-run victory.

Jasprit Bumrah celebrates with teammates (AP)

Bumrah, who ignited England’s batting collapse in the second session, lavished praise on his teammate Shardul. The latter provided the opening breakthrough to the visitors in the second innings, by getting rid of Rory Burns, and then dismissed in-form home captain Joe Root.

Addressing a virtual press-conference after the triumph at The Oval, Bumrah said Shardul’s impact was massive, adding that having a fourth pacer in the team is always helpful.

“It is massive. Shardul Thakur played two crucial knocks that really helped us to gain momentum. Even in the first innings, he changed the momentum and it shifted towards us. We created a lot of pressure and we got two wickets in the evening session on the first day. And in the second innings, we had gotten to a reasonable score but he took the team to safety, and with the ball, he took the crucial wickets. His impact was massive, it is always necessary to have that fifth bowler who gives you that comfort and does the job for the team. Hopefully, he carries on,” said Bumrah.

During the course of the match, Bumrah also became the fastest Indian pacer to take 100 wickets in the longest format of the game.

“We as a team always look to be in the present, sometimes things would go your way, and sometimes they won't. But as a team, we are focusing on how to get back in the game. We are looking to how to fight and get the team out of this situation. It is very important for the team to not lose faith because 5 days is a lot of cricket, the game can change anytime. We always wanted to be like that, we have a lot of belief in our unit and we know we can grab on to the opportunity whenever we can get it,” said Bumrah.

“I do not think about the numbers, it is a joyous occasion that I have taken 100 wickets in Tests as I wanted to play the format for a very long time,” he added.

(With ANI Inputs)