Whenever Rohit Sharma has found himself in times of trouble, be it for India or for the Mumbai Indians in the Indian Premier League, Jasprit Bumrah has been a perfect ace up the sleeve. Much like Indians fans of yore would breathe a sigh of relief when Sachin Tendulkar or, later on, Virat Kohli walked out to bat, there is a sense of hope that the odds will swing back in India’s favour when Bumrah is handed the ball. Bumrah proved it once again on Saturday, as India beat South Africa by seven runs in the 2024 ICC Men’s T20 World Cup final.
Picking three left-arm spinners was always going to be a gamble for India at the World Cup. It had not backfired yet for the Sharma-led team at the event in the United States and West Indies. But on Saturday, in the final in Barbados against South Africa, Kuldeep Yadav and Axar Patel were up against two of the best players of spin in the world – David Miller and Heinrich Klaasen.
As long as those two were still at the crease, South Africa believed. Over 14 was Yadav’s to bowl – the first four balls were good and then he was hit for a four and six. The equation then was 54 needed from 36 balls.
Then Patel came on and was taken apart by Klaasen – 24 runs off one over and now South Africa needed a run-a-ball 30. India needed to stutter the South African charge and if a wicket came in the process, that would be a bonus. Bring on Bumrah.
The first ball of the 16th over nearly brought India that much coveted wicket, when Miller barely .
