Jasprit Bumrah was named the player of the match for the T20 World Cup final with an inspiring spell of 4-14 in his four overs he bowled against New Zealand at the Narendra Modi Stadium on Sunday. After the game, Bumrah said that he felt that he had been ‘trying too hard’ before the T20 World Cup.
“Before this tournament I was in that zone where I felt I was trying too hard because I was bowling well but felt I was trying too hard. This tournament I just tried to let the game come to me, and that worked really well. My individual assessment has always been my strength and getting MOTM at my home ground in a World Cup final, it doesn’t get better than that,” Bumrah said during the presentation ceremony at the Narendra Modi Stadium on Sunday.
On being asked what the win meant for him, particularly since it came at his home stadium. Bumrah said: “It feels extremely special because I’ve played one final in my home (the ODI World Cup final in 2023) venue but couldn’t win that one, but today I won. I knew the wicket was a flat one, so I had to use all my experience.”
Bumrah ended the tournament as the joint highest wicket-taker (along with compatriot Varun Chakaravarthy) with 14 scalps.
Bumrah used the slower balls to lethal effect against New Zealand on Sunday. Asked what his thought process had been behind the slower balls, Bumrah said: “Because of the experience (of playing here in the past), because I’ve played on belters over here, and I have seen the other teams too, I learned that trying to bowl too fast can make shot-making easier. So I just played smart, and tried to think of what the batsmen were trying to do.”
Bumrah was the spearhead of a bowling attack that had the likes of Hardik Pandya and Arshdeep Singh besides Axar Patel. When asked about their contributions, Bumrah said: “Whenever we discuss, they always come up with options. And when communication is needed we did that. We never panicked. Kept our heads above the water. Teams that do that win the tournament and I am very happy we did it.”
