Bharat Arun, former Indian bowling coach, will always be known as the man responsible for triggering India’s rise as a formidable fast-bowling unit in Test cricket. With him serving as bowling coach, the Indian pace attack emerged as arguably the world’s best and one that was regularly pick 20 wickets in a Test match away from home.
The reason behind India’s back-to-back Test series wins in Australia and their phenomenal show in England has plenty to do with how the pacers performed. Bharat Arun recalls how an India pacer had left Virat Kohli impressed with his bowling in the nets, which then paved the way for his Test debut.
The pace bowling duo of Jasprit Bumrah and Mohammed Shami have wreaked havoc wherever they have played, and with Ishant Sharma, Mohammed Siraj and Shardul Thakur, have made life difficult for the opponents.
Bharat Arun: Virat Kohli Was Impressed With Jasprit Bumrah At Nets
Bharat Arun, in a freewheeling chat, recalled how plans were being put in place for Jasprit Bumrah’s Test debut in the 2018 Test series in South Africa, pointing out one particular incident that went a long way in the pacer earning his Test cap.
“We had 10-12 days for practice before the start of that South Africa series in 2018. During that period, Virat was extremely impressed with Bumrah in the nets – he said, “He [Bumrah] is the most difficult to face amongst all the bowlers we have.” So, he instantly decided that Bumrah would be playing in the first Test, and his career took off from there,” Bharat Arun said.
Former India coach Ravi Shastri had shed some light earlier on how Jasprit Bumrah’s Test debut came about, a topic on which Bharat Arun also shared his thought. Back in 2018, Jasprit Bumrah made his Test debut under the leadership of Virat Kohli on the tour of South Africa.
He got the opportunity two years after playing his first limited-overs game for the country. He excelled with the ball in the Rainbow Nation, scalping 14 wickets in the tour, and ended up being the second-highest wicket-taker for India, after Mohammed Shami.
Bharat Arun: Ravi Shastri Was Keen On Unleashing Pacer Jasprit Bumrah In South Africa
He recalls how pacer Jasprit Bumrah – who had then established himself as India’s strike bowler in ODIs and T20Is – was always passionate about representing the country in Tests, and when Bharat Arun shared this thought with Ravi Shastri, things got moving.
“Ravi and I had a discussion… He wanted me to give Bumrah a call when we were in Kolkata and tell him that he may be on the tour to South Africa to play Test cricket. Bumrah, previously, when he was part of the ODI teams, constantly told me that his dream was to be a successful Test cricketer,” Arun explained.
“When I told Ravi about this, he said Bumrah adds a huge dimension to the bowling. He was keen on unleashing him in South Africa. He had a word with Virat, who then spoke to selectors, and that’s how Bumrah, the Test phenomenon, came into being.”
Jasprit Bumrah has so far picked 113 wickets in 27 Test matches at an average of 22.85. In the 2018 debut Test tour of South Africa, Jasprit Bumrah took 14 wickets in three matches at an average of 25.21 and was the second-highest wicket-taker for India behind Mohammed Shami’s tally of 15 wickets.
In his Test career, Jasprit Bumrah has played 27 Tests and has bagged 113 wickets at an average of 22.86 economy of 2.66 and strike rate of 51.59. Out of his 27 Tests, only 3 have come at home and out of his 113 Test wickets, 109 have been away from home.