London: Jasprit Bumrah took the pitch out of the equation and ripped the heart out of England batting line-up bowling awkward angles which made him unplayable, said former captain Alastair Cook.
Bumrah produced a masterclass in reverse swing during a sensational six-wicket haul to bowl out England for 253 and give India a crucial 143-run first innings lead in Vizag.
“Bumrah has carried India through today and has single-handedly changed the course of this game,” Cook, who was England Test captain from 2012 to 2017, told TNT Sports.
“England’s batting card started so well with Ben Duckett and Zak Crawley, who played beautifully for 76. His wicket, the first time he came down the wicket and tried to hit leg-side – getting a leading edge – that was the changing point.
“Bumrah jumped in and ripped the heart out of the England batting line-up.” The 39-year-old Cook, who is the fifth-highest Test run scorer of all time, had ended his international career in 2018 following a series against India.
“I’ve faced Bumrah a number of times, but I don’t think I’ve ever faced him bowling as well as that,” he said.
“His awkwardness, his different angles, he creates a different vision for the batter and it makes him sometimes unplayable.” Bumrah dismissed Joe Root, Ollie Pope and Jonny Bairstow during an impressive spell. He also cleaned up England skipper Ben Stokes and later got rid off Tom Hartley and James Anderson.
“Root was first to go, Pope to an unplayable in-swinging yorker, Bairstow and Stokes too falling to Bumrah. He has changed the game. He took the pitch out of it; it was down to him and him only. 253 all out is well below par.” “England have let an opportunity slip from 110-1, but I actually think that at some stage you have to doff your cap to the opposition.”
How Bumrah dismantled Root
Bumrah dismissed Root for the 8th time in Test cricket. While the India pacer had him caught behind on Saturday, he had trapped the former England skipper leg before in the first Test.
Cook praised Bumrah for sowing seeds of doubt in his mind.
“A couple of those balls, the Bumrah spell against Joe Root, is actually very high-quality reverse swing bowling,” he said.
“Bumrah has a really good record against Root. He’s got him out eight times in 12 Test matches, so he doesn’t line him up particularly well. So when he tries to get him LBW, he starts covering that.
“At Hyderabad, he was playing across the line and got LBW. Early on he saw an in-swinger and played a beautiful straight bat, so he’s trying to do it. But what he does do, you’re looking to play the ball all the time.
“Bumrah has realised that and dragged him wider. So you’re trying to cover that but it brings another dismissal into play, so he’s got him out both ways now. Now Root’s in that horrible position that the batsman has got the wood over you, so how are you going to counter it?”
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