ENG vs IND: It Is A Fair Result For The Series: Jasprit Bumrah After India's Loss In The Fifth Test

Jasprit Bumrah is the highest wicket-taker of the series. He led India from the front in terms of bowling throughout the 5 Tests.

But between the 4th Test and the 5th Test, a lot changed for the Indian team. Virat Kohli was no longer the captain. Newly appointed all-format captain Rohit Sharma was not available for the game. His deputy KL Rahul was not available too due to an injury.

That paved the way for India to appoint Bumrah as the captain for the last Test. Bumrah officially became the first-ever Indian fast bowler to lead India in a Test match. He was ecstatic to lead India as was visible when he went for the toss.

We Could Have Won The Series Had The First Test Was Not Rained Out: Jasprit Bumrah

Everything seemed to go his and India’s way until the 4th innings of the Test. While batting Bumrah created the record for scoring the most runs in a single over as he hit Stuart Broad for 29 runs. India scored 35 runs in that over. While bowling he got 3 wickets as well. He also took a fantastic catch to dismiss his counterpart, Ben Stokes.

But then as Indian batters botched up their batting in the 3rd innings, things started to go south when England openers came all guns blazing chasing 378 runs. Bumrah’s captaincy was not up to the mark and it was clearly visible that he was out of ideas.

Despite getting Player of the series for India, he wouldn’t be happy that his first Test as captain ended in a loss. After the game, he said, “I won’t go that far ahead (of calling himself an all-rounder). That’s the beauty of Test cricket, even if you have three good days. We fell short with the bat yesterday and that is where we let the opposition in to let the match slip away from us. Ifs and buts can always be there.

“If you go back, if there was no rain in the first match, we could have won the series. But England played really well. We have drawn the series and both teams played very good cricket and it was a fair result.

“Pant takes his chances. He and Jaddu got us back into the game with their counter-attack. We were ahead in the game. He takes his chances, backs himself and is very happy for him. Dravid is always there to guide us and back us.

“We could have been a little straighter in our bowling lines and used the variable bounce. The captaincy is not what I decide. I like the responsibility. It was a good challenge, a new challenge. It was an honour to lead the team and a great experience.”

Bumrah picked up 23 wickets for India in the series and also contributed with crucial runs in the lower order.

Also Read: ENG vs IND: There Was Absolute Clarity That We Were Chasing The Total: Joe Root