Follow UsFormer Indian batter Robin Uthappa believes Jasprit Bumrah tends to lose his rhythm when he tries too hard to pick wickets, a trait that was visible during India’s defeat to Australia in the second T20I at the MCG on October 31 (Friday).
India endured a tough outing with the bat on a lively surface, getting bundled out for just 125 in 18.4 overs after a relentless spell from Josh Hazlewood and Co. The visitors needed early breakthroughs to stay in the game, but Mitchell Marsh and Travis Head counterattacked aggressively - taking 18 runs (including four byes) off Bumrah’s second over to set the tone.
Though Bumrah eventually finished with 2/26 from four overs, both wickets came too late to change the course of the match as Australia cruised to victory by four wickets with nearly seven overs remaining.
“When we were bowling after scoring 125, the start was very important. If we had picked up two or three wickets in the first three or four overs, the game could have been closer because we have quality spinners in the middle overs. I felt we were probably trying too hard to pick up wickets. So we got a little wayward,” Uthappa said on Star Sports, as reported by The Indian Express.
“I have observed that whenever Bumrah gets desperate to pick up wickets, he becomes slightly wayward, and when he is disciplined and hits a good line and length, he mostly picks up wickets. Australia took full advantage of that waywardness at the start, the way we started with the ball in the second innings.”
While Bumrah’s start was under scrutiny, the real issue lay with India’s batting collapse. On a day when the top order faltered, Abhishek Sharma stood tall with a fearless 68 off 37 balls, laced with eight fours and two sixes. In contrast, Shubman Gill (5), Sanju Samson (2), Suryakumar Yadav (1), Tilak Varma (0) and Axar Patel (7) combined for just 15 runs, leaving India reeling at 49/5 inside eight overs.
Abhishek, however, found some support from Harshit Rana (35 off 33) as the pair added 56 runs for the sixth wicket, ensuring India crossed 120. Apart from those two, no other batter managed to reach double digits.
“Slightly disappointing, because you had obviously lost the toss, but the batters could have given themselves a little time. They chose the aggressive batting option and they lost too many wickets in the first six overs because of that,” Uthappa added.
“Abhishek had to manage the innings after six overs. He had a good partnership with Harshit, but apart from that partnership, no batter stood with him, so that India could have scored at least 150. This team will get a lot of learning from this. This young team will have to understand that there is a slight extra bounce here and they will have to adjust their game plans accordingly.”
With the opening game washed out, India now trail the five-match T20I series 1-0, with the third fixture set to take place in Hobart on November 2 (Sunday).