MS Dhoni adviced me to just enjoy myself on debut, reveals Jasprit Bumrah

Jasprit Bumrah’s rise to the top level of international cricket has been nothing but sensational. Widely known for his awkward action which leaves the viewers bewildered, Bumrah rose to the spotlight in 2013 when he represented Mumbai Indians after being spotted by former India coach John Wright during a Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy.

Between 2013 to 2016, the lanky pacer established himself as a vital cog in Mumbai’s pace-bowling unit and at the Sydney Cricket Ground in 2016, with India trailing the five-match series 4-0, Bumrah was handed a shock debut by the team management against a strong Aussie side comprising Aaron Finch, David Warner and Steve Smith.

Bumrah returned figures of 2/40, including famously accounting for the scalp of Steve Smith, which was incidentally his first ever wicket in international cricket, and hasn’t looked back since then. Like any debutant, the then 23-year-old Bumrah, too, was nervous and anxious heading into the game, but the speedster revealed how MS Dhoni’s kind words helped him overcome them and excel in the game. 

“Nobody came up to me, nobody said anything, but MS came up and said just be yourself and enjoy,” Bumrah said in Cricbuzz’s ‘spicy pitch’ show.

That night turned out to be just the tipping point in Bumrah’s career as since, the pacer has gone on to play a total of 127 international matches for India, cementing himself as the side’s number one pacer.