There are arguably no bigger terrors for batters in the modern-day game than facing Jasprit Bumrah. Over the last few years, the India pacer has become one of the most lethal bowlers of the current era, someone who has earned the respect of batters in all formats of the sport. But, now Yuvraj Singh has opened up about how tantalising it was to face off against a 16-year-old Bumrah in the nets. Yuvraj, who was a guest on The Overlap Cricket hosted by Michael Vaughan recently, narrated the incident of facing Bumrah back in 2013. “When I was trying to make a comeback in the Indian team after battling cancer — I was trying to get back into cricket — and Bumrah was about 16 years old and he was bowling rapid in the nets. And I was like, ‘I want this kid out of the nets’ and ‘stop bowling to me’. I was like, ‘Kid, stop! Whoever you are.’ Because I was just trying to make a comeback from cancer, was just trying to get into my zone. And this guy was just bowling lethal,” Yuvraj told Vaughan. Yuvraj added: “Bumrah came and told me this story later on, that I asked him to stop bowling to him. And I was like, ‘yeah, because you were bowling too quick.’” Yuvraj was speaking to Vaughan right after the T20 World Cup semi-final against England where Bumrah’s 18th over at the Wankhede Stadium had swung the game in India’s favour. “To defend on that wicket… If Jasprit didn’t bowl a good over at that stage, we were done.” Talking about the difference between the current version of Bumrah and that 16-year-old Bumrah, Yuvraj said: “He definitely had a longer run up. I don’t think he would had so much skill, but he was quick. Extremely quick and with his action he’s got this deceptive bounce. He just keeps on getting into your ribs all the time. You don’t like that!” Yuvraj then heaped praise on Bumrah.Story continues below this ad “If you look at the way the game is evolving, he has to be the best because batsmen are not going after him. They’re like scared to go after him; they feel like it’s best to just rotate the strike and hit the other bowlers. And the moment they want to go after him, he doesn’t allow them. He’s just really smart. Obviously he’s got a great skill as well and he’s got a deceptive action. It’s hard to pick his slower one out of his hand.”
‘Kid, whoever you are, stop bowling at me, man!’: Yuvraj Singh on facing a 16-year-old Jasprit Bumrah in the nets
