Former India bowler Praveen Kumar threw light on Virat Kohli’s unavailability for the India vs England Test series and Jasprit Bumrah’s absence from the fourth Test in Ranchi.
Praveen, playing in the Indian Veteran Premier League (IVPL), said that the side is surely missing the services of Jasprit Bumrah who was rested from the fourth Test against England in the ongoing five-match series.
Praveen added that Bumrah is the kind of bowler who has the ability to pick wickets at crucial junctures for the side.
“For sure, we are missing Jasprit Bumrah in this Test match. He is a very different kind of a bowler. Everyone knows he is a brilliant bowler. Whenever the team needs wickets, he is the one who gets you the breakthroughs,” he told CricketNext.
India had reduced England to 112/5 in the first session of Day 1 but Joe Root showed his mettle and took the visitors to 353 after scoring a brilliant ton. India eventually conceded a 46-run first innings lead which sparked disappointment amongst the Indian supporters.
Virat Kohli’s unavailability
The right-arm medium pacer who has played a good amount of cricket with Kohli said the batter’s unavailability in this series is an opportunity for the youngsters to showcase their talent at the highest level.
“See, he is someone who has been playing for 16 years continuously for the team. If he is not unavailable, it’s fine. You have other players as well who are young. Kohli’s unavailability is creating a vacant spot for someone else which should be taken as an opportunity,” Praveen explained.
The 37-year-old also praised Rohit Sharma for his captaincy and the way he has been leading the side across formats.
“Rohit is a very good captain, no matter what format he is playing. He is very good whether it is T20, ODI, Test, or IPL. He has got that understanding of using an individual player’s strength,” he added.
‘Jaiswal to zabardast player hai’
Praveen is impressed with the way Sarfaraz Khan and Yashasvi Jaiswal have played in the series so far.
“Both of them are very good players. In fact, I have played with Sarfaraz as well during his days with UP. I was the captain of the side then.
“Yashasvi has scored two double-hundreds already in very few matches. Zabardast player hai. After a very long time, we have got such kind of a left-handed opener.”
‘IVPL is more of a get together’
The medium pacer also lauded IVPL for bringing together “old friends”.
“It’s a very good tournament. All the old friends get a chance to have a get-together. This is a very good league for the players who are above 35-40,” he concluded.
The Board of Veteran Cricket in India has organised the second season of IVPL in Greater Noida.
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