Jasprit Bumrah is one of the leading cricketers in the world today. The fast bowler in the last for years has earned accolades from various quarters. However, Bumrah is still to be recognized by the Indian government even after performing consistently in all three formats. According to sources Bumrah for the second year in a row, his name is missing for the recommended players for the prestigious Arjuna Award. Bumrah much like last year was asked to fill the form by the BCCI for the Arjuna Award.
In 2019 BCCI suggested names of three players which included Poonam Yadav, Mohd Shami and Ravindra Jadeja. Bumrah will now have to wait again as per source this year Ishant Sharma, Shikhar Dhawan and Deepti Sharma are the three names that have been given by BCCI for the Arjuna Award. Meanwhile, Rohit Sharma has been recommended for the Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna Award.
Jasprit Bumrah not in contention for Arjuna Award
“Surprisingly, Jasprit Bumrah is not in the mix. When there is no intention of honouring the candidate, why should that cricketer be told to fill the Arjuna Award while nominating names”, the source said.
No recognition for Bumrah is surprising as the skilful fast bowler has performed exceedingly well in his career. He made his T20 debut against Australia in 2016 and is now the leading wicket-taker for India in the format.
In ODIs Bumrah has a phenomenal record and was at top of the ICC rankings for bowlers for a long time. In the 14 Test matches in his career so far he has picked 68 wickets at an average of just 20 including a hat-trick last year in the West Indies.
“Jasprit Bumrah is doing so much for the country for the last four years or so. And yet, there is no recognition from anyone. Of course, Ishant Sharma and Shikhar Dhawan are seniors, but you can’t be recommending names for the sake of it. The board should also ensure that their names are taken seriously by the concerned screening committee”, the source concluded.