IND vs IRE: "I'm Surprised With..." - Abhishek Nayar Reveals Why Jasprit Bumrah's Return Has Surprised Him

Former India batter Abhishek Nayar has made a revelation on why the return of the pace spearhead Jasprit Bumrah to competitive cricket following his recovery from an injury has surprised him.

Bumrah made his comeback to cricket after an 11-month hiatus in the first T20I of the three-match series against Paul Stirling-led Ireland National Cricket Team at the Malahide in Dublin on Friday, August 18.

He was hit for a four on his first delivery, but he castled Andy Balbirnie on the second ball and then bowled two dots before dismissing the wicketkeeper-batter Lorcan Tucker for a duck on the fifth delivery of the over. He bowled staggering lines and lengths and gave away just 24 runs in his 4-over quota. Also, in the second game, he was exceptional as he finished with the figures of 2/15.

Meanwhile, Abhishek Nayar said that Bumrah has bowled extremely well following his comeback and has left him pleasantly surprised.

“I have been surprised with how well he has come back post his surgery. He has been on point in terms of his execution and even his captaincy. I have been very impressed and I am very happy that he has come back the way he has,” Nayar, who is an expert with JioCinema for the T20I series in Ireland, told reporters on Tuesday, as quoted by Hindustan Times.

In terms of the small changes, we felt that he has sort of lengthened his run-up – Abhishek Nayar on Jasprit Bumrah

Abhishek Nayar further highlighted the changes Jasprit Bumrah has made to his bowling action after his comeback. He added that Kiran More had pinpointed that the pacer has lengthened his run-up and has increased his follow-through.

“First of all, he has been terrific in these two matches. Through the Ireland series it is pretty clear now that Bumrah is fit and raring to go. In terms of the small changes, we felt that he has sort of lengthened his run up. He is running in a lot harder than he used to. He is very unique in the way he walks before starting his run up. That is a small change that Kiran More pointed out. I am not certain whether or not he has actually made it.”

“But he does seem to be running in a lot harder and his follow through has increased drastically which is predicament to the fact that he is running a lot harder and finishing really well. That is the change we have seen. Bumrah has been terrific and it is great news for India and Indian fans that he is firing in all cylinders and also doing that with all the variations,” he said.

Recently, an NCA Level-III certified coach while speaking to PTI also said that Bumrah has increased his run-up with bigger follow-through in order to avoid any big injuries.