Under-cooked, indisciplined, wayward... You generally never associate these with Jasprit Bumrah. He has not risen to an all-time greatness status for nothing. But he is human after all. The fourth Test in Manchester came as the biggest proof of that and unfortunately for India, it came when they were 1-2 down. They desperately needed their best bowler to fire on all cylinders to draw level in the series. As fate would have it, the exact opposite happened.
For the first time in his glittering Test career, Bumrah conceded more than 100 runs in an innings for only two wickets. That was not even the worst part. It was the ineffective way he bowled right through England's innings. His pace was down. The lines were inconsistent; there was no real thrust going into the ball. Bumrah appeared tired and spent.
India's second-best fast bowler Mohammed Siraj, who, unlike Bumrah, featured in all four Tests of this series so far, was no better. Known for giving more than 100 per cent every time he runs in to bowl, Siraj ran out of fuel after the first session of Day 3 as England batters kept on piling the runs.
Legendary Australia captain Ricky Ponting minced no words in cracking the whip at Bumrah and Siraj. "That's why the game's called Test Cricket. Yeah, it is a test. It's a physical test, it's a mental test and a challenge. There was always concerns about Bumrah and Siraj really getting through this Test Series with as many games under their belt as possible. You know, this is, I think, the fourth game now for Siraj. So, yeah, they're starting to take its toll. There's no doubt about that," Ponting said on SKY Sports.
{{/usCountry}}Legendary Australia captain Ricky Ponting minced no words in cracking the whip at Bumrah and Siraj. "That's why the game's called Test Cricket. Yeah, it is a test. It's a physical test, it's a mental test and a challenge. There was always concerns about Bumrah and Siraj really getting through this Test Series with as many games under their belt as possible. You know, this is, I think, the fourth game now for Siraj. So, yeah, they're starting to take its toll. There's no doubt about that," Ponting said on SKY Sports.
{{/usCountry}}Siraj bowled 30 overs for just one wicket and conceded 140 runs. Bumrah, on the other hand, picked up a couple of wickets for 1112 runs.
Ponting said Bumrah looked flat, his pace was down, and once England openers Zak Crawley and Ben Duckett put the Indian under pressure, there was no counterpunch.
"Bumrah did look a bit flat right from the start of this game, to be honest. You look at his pace. His pace has been sort of 82, 83 miles an hour on average right the way through this game, which is probably three or four or five miles down on what he normally is. But you've got to give credit to the England batters as well. I thought Duckett and Crawley at the top really put this Indian bowling attack under a lot of pressure from the start," Ponting said.
The Indian team management announced before the start of the series that Bumrah was fit to play only three out of the five Tests, which means it is all but confirmed that the World's No.1-ranked bowler's England tour has ended. He is unlikely to be a part of India's XI going into the final Test at The Oval.
Ben Stokes delivered a match-defining all-round performance as England posted a record 669 to take a commanding 311-run lead over India in the fourth Test at Old Trafford. Stokes scored a stroke-filled 141 off 198 balls, completing a rare double of a century and a five-wicket haul in the same match. He also became only the third cricketer with 7,000 runs and 200 wickets after Jacques Kallis and Sir Gary Sobers. India’s second innings began disastrously, losing Yashasvi Jaiswal and Sai Sudharsan in successive balls in the first over. It marked the first time since 2014 that India conceded 600+ runs.