New Delhi: In a few days’ time, the spotlight will again be back on Jasprit Bumrah.The keyboard warriors and YouTube yappers have already started debating how many games he will play in the Asia Cup. Whether he will feature only in the big matches with the West Indies Test series to follow. Shortly after the Asia Cup final, on September 28, India will host the Windies on October 2, leaving just three days to recover for the first Test at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad.His workload has been the flavour of the season. Bumrah playing only three Tests in the Anderson-Tendulkar Trophy raised eyebrows. Legends of the game questioned his patriotism. He was compared with past greats. Bumrah missing the Edgbaston Test despite a week-long gap, and then The Oval Test with the series on the line, was questionable — and only the team management has all the answers.
Former India off-spinner Harbhajan Singh requested the fans to cut Bumrah some slack. “Jasprit Bumrah bahot hi honest insaan hai (Jasprit Bumrah is a very honest person),” he told TimesofIndia.com.“He knows his body. He knows how much workload his body can handle. He knows when to play and when to rest. No one can define workload better than Bumrah,” says Harbhajan.Jasprit Bumrah thrives on challenges. He is a non-conformist. He has always chosen the unconventional route. While most athletes are swayed by the Messi-Ronaldo rivalry, and enamoured by them, his inspiration comes from Zlatan Ibrahimovic, a maverick and a freak in his own way.
Jasprit Bumrah posted on Instagram when he got a signed Zlatan Ibrahimovic AC Milan jersey. (Instagram)
During Covid-19, in an Instagram Live with Rohit Sharma, Bumrah had said: “I love Ibra. I can relate to his story that people did not take him seriously and then he became a star. I can relate as I think people took me lightly initially and then I proved them wrong, I am still trying.”Why he likes Zlatan is because of the Swedish footballer’s self-belief, and when Zlatan retired, Bumrah posted on Instagram: “For being a constant source of inspiration for me and helping me discover that lion-hearted never-back-down attitude, thank you. You’ve made outstanding memories through your time in the game that’ll live on.”Bumrah loves Zlatan because, like him, he too was an outlier who carved a career in a modern era dominated by Messi and Ronaldo.“Bumrah is a generational talent and he is an outlier,” Soham Desai, former India Strength and Conditioning coach, tells TimesofIndia.com.“He is a freak of nature. So he is a person who will always be discussed. Even 50-100 years from now, his case will be discussed because of the uniqueness he brings to the table with his bowling, his mindset, his body, his action, his impact, and in such a short span, what he has achieved for himself and the country,” says Desai.
Jasprit Bumrah in a practice session during the England tour. (Getty Images)
Although Bumrah is unlike Ibrahimovic in being outspoken and stirring controversy, the Swedish footballer, too, defied the norms of collectivism and focused on individualism in order to further his career.The striker called himself a “Ferrari among Fiats” which, while hyperbolic, put emphasis on his self-confidence and faith in his skill – something that resonates strongly with Bumrah.Again, like Bumrah, Zlatan suffered multiple injuries throughout his storied career. Knee, thigh, calf, foot and head – to name a few. He, too, played lengthy periods of his 24-year career in pain. During his spell at Manchester United, he motored on without an ACL for six months, surviving on painkillers and weekly procedures before finally going under the knife.“When you play on this level it’s all about performance. If you perform, if you bring results, then you are still at the top,” said a 39-year-old Ibrahimovic in 2020. And Bumrah’s 32 wickets in Australia last year makes it clear as day that he’s at the top of his game.
Jasprit Bumrah in numbers.
Soham explains the Bumrah workload debate in a very nonchalant way.“To put it simply, if you have five cars in your garage and three destinations to reach — Mumbai, Delhi, and Leh –you will pick the best car for the best route, right? You won’t pick a random car to go to any random location,” he explains.“So you will pick the most rugged, strong, robust, and resilient car to go to Leh. Then you will pick a comfortable car for Delhi, and a fast, quick one for Mumbai.”“Likewise, when you see five fast bowlers and five tournaments in a year across three formats, with two or three monumental events and a few less important ones, you pick and choose your bowlers — your cars — for the right destinations, to achieve those goals.”
With his biomechanics, he is prone to injury. Let’s be honest. But he is lethal, effective, and you have to give him that leeway
Ramji Srinivasan
The 2011 World Cup-winning S&C coach Ramji Srinivasan echoes Desai’s view and says it is unfair to compare Bumrah with Kapil Dev or Mohammed Siraj, and requests the team management to preserve him.“Bumrah’s biomechanics are completely different from the likes of Kapil Dev, Jawagal Srinath or Zaheer Khan. With his biomechanics, he is prone to injury. Let’s be honest. But he is lethal, effective, and you have to give him that leeway,” reasons Ramji.“His biomechanics, his body is prone to injury because of his movement mechanics. And it’s a no-brainer. So for that, keep him fit. He will miss a couple of matches. That you cannot avoid. But still, he has been one of the most lethal, top-class bowlers in the world. So, no comparison between him and Siraj. It’s very sad to do that.“People like Bumrah should be preserved. He can be a game-changer in every game he plays,” he says.Harbhajan Singh settles the debate regarding Bumrah’s workload by reminding everyone of his 32 wickets on the Australia tour, where he literally put his back on the line.“Work load woh hota hai jab Bumrah jaise bowler Australia mein lagataar bowling karta rahe (Workload is when a bowler like Bumrah kept bowling continuously in Australia),” he says.
Jasprit Bumrah (X Photo)
“He was carrying the workload of others. There comes a series when a bowler takes the entire toll upon himself. That’s what happened in Australia. In the end, what happened — uski saari body toot gai (His entire body broke down),” Harbhajan recollects.Soham Desai very subtly explains why Bumrah should not be compared with others. “We get emotional about it. On national duty, we can get very aggressive, very patriotic. But if you take a step back and look at the bigger picture, you’ll see those are the decisions that end up putting you in the best positions to win the big moments and big trophies of the year or season.“So you don’t want your best horse unavailable for the biggest race of the year representing India,” he says, citing the important titles India will fight for in the next two years and why a fit Bumrah will be key to success.Right from his early days, he has been questioned, but he stayed unhinged. Tagged a T20I bowler because of his IPL exploits, Bumrah is now No. 1 in Tests and has won matches single-handedly.
Jasprit Bumrah had posted on social media when Swedish footballer Zlatan Ibrahimovic retired. (Image: Twitter)
There’s a classic line in Bumrah’s idol’s autobiography “I Am Zlatan” that resonates deeply with him and what he has endured over the years: “I wanted to stand up to the world and prove to everyone who doubted me who I truly was,” Zlatan wrote.In a YouTube conversation with his India teammate Ravichandran Ashwin, Bumrah spoke about his belief system and explained how having two ears helps him deal with unsolicited advice. He had said: “No one believed in me. In my head, I felt I was the best,” stated the seamer before adding, “You hear with one ear, let it out through another.”He should continue doing that, and as Virat Kohli, who famously called Jasprit Bumrah a national treasure, had said: “We are lucky that he plays for us.”