"Steal his boots": Wasim Akram gives hilarious suggestion to stop Jasprit Bumrah
Oct 30, 2023
New Delhi [India], October 30 : Pakistan's iconic pacer Wasim Akram has suggested a hilarious approach to stop Indian speedster Jasprit Bumrah by stealing his boots after his spell played a crucial role in guiding the Men in Blue to a 100-run victory over England in the ongoing World Cup.
In the opening spell, Bumrah with his inswinging deliveries took England's batters by surprise as he claimed Dawid Malan and Joe Root's wicket early in the innings.
After India's victory, Akram sang praises about Bumrah, in a show hosted by Pakistan Sports Channel A Sports and said, "If you want to stop Jasprit Bumrah steal his boots. When you bring the ball from the right-hand side, the ball is coming inside. So, the batsman will play from the angle. When the ball will come out from the inside, the batsman will be beaten."
Akram even went on to say that with the new ball Bumrah has better control than he did during his playing days, "When I used to out-swing the right-hand batter, I used to hold the ball like this and hit the wrist. So, the ball will come inside and go out. But, Bumrah definitely got better control with the new ball than me."
Former England cricketer, Mike Atherton also spoke about Bumrah and Mohammed Shami's exceptional bowling performance against the Three Lions and told ICC Digital Insider, "There was a top-class spell from Jasprit Bumrah, but I'd say Mohammed Siraj wasn't quite at his best. So what Rohit Sharma really needed was his third seamer, Mohammed Shami, to put in a top-quality spell with the new ball."
"He (Shami) kept Ben Stokes under lock and key, didn't give him anything to hit. He bowled a really tight line at him, and in the end Stokes lost his patience. To get that wicket at that point was such a critical moment in the game. Once England were four down at the end of the opening Powerplay it was very difficult to see them coming back and chasing that target," Atherton added.
After facing a couple of setbacks in the first innings, India managed to put up a total of 229/9 and it proved to be enough as the Three Lions succumbed to a total of 129 as Mohammed Shami and Jasprit Bumrah inspired the Men in Blue to a thumping 100-run victory.
India will face Sri Lanka on Thursday at the Wankhede Stadium, Mumbai hoping to extend their win streak to seven.
