He would give me important overs: Jasprit Bumrah reveals how Rohit Sharma helped in his growth

Jasprit Bumrah has grown in stature significantly with each passing year. He debuted in the Indian Premier League (IPL) in 2013 but hardly got regular appearances. In his first two seasons, Bumrah didn't play a massive role in Rohit Sharma-led Mumbai Indians' (MI) campaign but slowly and steadily moved up the ladder, with good performances in domestic circuit and following his international debut in early 2016.

To date, Bumrah remains one of the most important players for the MI franchise. He has helped the Mumbai-based franchise win plenty of close encounters, and trophies,picking up 130 wickets in 106 matches at an impressive average of 23.03. Recently, in a conversation with R Ashwin on the wily spinner's Youtube channel, Bumrah spilled the beans on his relationship with Rohit and revealed how Hitman helped him in his growth.

ALSO READ |Ind vs SL, 2nd T20I: Rohit Sharma on the cusp of achieving major milestones in Dharamshala

Add WION as a Preferred Source

"It's been very good (Relationship) since the early days. When I came into the side, Ricky Ponting was the captain but I was not playing regularly. But under Rohit, I did. He had a lot of confidence in me, he instilled confidence." He asserted, "He (Rohit) saw me bowling in the nets and the skills that I have. He always backed me, told me to believe in myself. Whenever in the initial stages as well, he had a lot of trust in me. He would give me the important overs. It's been the same relationship."

ALSO READ |IPL 2022 new format explained: Mumbai Indians and Chennai Super Kings headline two groups

Bumrah further added, "Now we have reached a stage he doesn't even tell me things. He will tell 'you set the field on your own, if you have any changes, tell me, I will do that'. He has had that trust because I have made things work. Somedays, things might not go well, but he always has kept the atmosphere in our team very simple and calm. Under him, I have got the freedom to do whatever I want. That has really helped me."

At present, Bumrah is India and MI's vital cog across formats. He is currently serving as Rohit's deputy in India's ongoing three-match T20I series versus Sri Lanka at home. Bumrah played his first-ever game in the shortest format post the 2021 T20 World Cup when India locked horns with Sri Lanka in the series opener in Lucknow on Thursday (February 24).

India and Sri Lanka meet each other in the second and penultimate T20I on Saturday evening (February 26) in Dharamshala.