Ace Indian pacer Jasprit Bumrah spoke about the rare onslaught he faced from Australian debutant Sam Konstas on Day 1 of the ongoing Boxing Day Test in Melbourne. Bumrah noted that despite Konstas’ T20-style batting against the new ball, he always felt a wicket was imminent.
Chosen for his aggressive batting, the 19-year-old opener dismantled the Indian attack, scoring an impressive 60 off 65 balls. Konstas was particularly harsh on Bumrah, hitting him for 14 and 18 runs in his fourth and sixth overs, respectively.
Reflecting on his encounter with the young batsman, Bumrah shared his thoughts with 7Cricket ahead of Day 3. He commented:
“I’ve experienced heaps of it, having played T20 cricket a lot, more than 12 years of T20 cricket. Interesting batsman. I always felt I was in the game. I never felt like I was far away from a wicket. Initially I felt I could get him out 6-7 times in the first two overs.”
He further continued:
“But that’s how cricket goes, some days it pays off it looks good and some days it doesn’t and you guys might be criticising the same person. I love different challenges and always looking forward to a new challenge.”
Konstas struck six boundaries and two sixes in his innings, surprising the Indian bowlers and giving Australia a strong start. On the other hand, Bumrah bounced back from a tough initial spell to finish with impressive figures of 4/99 in the first innings.
“Playfully telling Pat Cummins that the wicket is a Christmas gift for the batters”- Jasprit Bumrah
Jasprit Bumrah feels the Melbourne pitch in the ongoing Test is ideal for batters, as India and Australia are tied 1-1 in the series. The hosts thrived with the bat, amassing 474 in their first innings, highlighted by a brilliant century from Steve Smith. India replied confidently, reaching 153/2 before a rough finish to Day 2 left them at 164/5 at stumps.
Ahead of Day 3 play, Bumrah discussed the ongoing Test, saying:
“We were in really good spirits. Little disappointed with how the last 20 minutes went ( Day 2) because both our batters were batting really well and the momentum shifted a little bit. But we back our batters, the wicket is really good. I was jokingly telling Pat Cummins that this wicket is a Christmas present to the batters that he has given. So we back our batters to bat deep and score runs.”
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