Vizag, India

Jasprit Bumrah is a generational talent, perhaps the best pacer from India since Zaheer Khan. The right-arm bowler is known for sending down some of the meanest and unplayable yorkers, an example of which was the delivery that got Ollie Pope’s middle and leg stumps breaking into halves in the first innings of the Vizag Test. After helping India win the match by 106 runs, claiming nine wickets across both innings, Bumrah revealed his first love in cricket.

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"As a youngster that [the yorker] is probably the first delivery I had learned because I had come from tennis ball cricket, and I had seen the legends of the game, Waqar [Younis], Wasim [Akram] and even Zaheer Khan, I had seen them on the television, how do they bowl yorkers," Bumrah told the broadcaster after India's 106-run victory. 

Bumrah’s love affair with bowling yorkers is there for everyone to see, and he admitted learning this type of delivery (first thing) when he picked the cricket ball. 

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"As a kid, I used to feel that is the only way to take wickets. So that is the first delivery I learned. Yes, I kept it with me, and I kept on using it to my advantage, and now, even in Test cricket, when you get wickets off it, it's great,” the India seamer said.

The ace India bowler returned with six wickets in the first innings, including removing star players like Root, Pope, Bairstow and Stokes. His spell (6/45) helped India dismiss England (in the first innings) inside three sessions on the second day. After India’s second innings, where they got out all out on 255, thanks to Shubman Gill’s third Test ton, Bumrah returned to haunt the visitors in the final outing, bagging three wickets.

'Numbers don't matter to Bumrah'

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Bumrah accounted for Bairstow, Foakes and all-rounder Hartley in the second innings, as India wrapped up England on 292, winning the Test by 106 runs.

Though Bumrah’s numbers are scary for the opposition irrespective of the venue, the India seamer said he doesn’t like looking into stats much as it adds to the pressure on those representing the country. 

"I don't look at numbers because when I was a youngster, I used to look at numbers. Yes, it made me excited, but you know, if you think about numbers, there's a lot of pressure anyway playing for India. And if you take that added baggage, it doesn't really help. So, I'm very happy that we won and when you contribute towards that success it feels even better,” Bumrah said, who averages 13.06 from six Tests in India, having picked 36 wickets.