Akash Deep opens up on bowling with world’s best bowler Jasprit Bumrah, reveals learnings from Australia tour

India’s fast bowler Akash Deep has opened up on bowling with gun fast bowler Jasprit Bumrah and said he learned a lot from the genius pacer. Deep was added to India’s playing XI in the third Test match at Brisbane after Harshit Rana was backed in the opening two games.

The Bengal pacer bagged five wickets in two Test matches at an average of 54. However, the seamer didn’t have the rub of the green on his side as he went past the edge on numerous occasions.

On the other hand, Jasprit Bumrah had an insane series for India, taking 32 wickets in five Test matches at an average of 13.06 and thus bagged Player of the Series award.

“It’s a great feeling when the world’s best bowler is bowling with you. But the onus to support him in a game is also huge. Other than that, you are in the best position to observe such a genius and learn what he’s trying out with the ball. The challenge is to learn from the world’s best and try to contribute accordingly otherwise you would look ordinary. So, it’s a motivation for me to keep helping the team,” Akash said on CricketNext (News18).

“I don’t think you can try a few things and become like Bumrah. Wo bhagwan ka diya hua alag insaan hai (He’s god’s gift). A perfect bowler, who is complete in every aspect. Not every bowler is like that and neither you can learn all those tactics from him. But what you can grasp is the technicalities, like how to create pressure on the opponents,” he added.

Speaking on his experience of bowling with the Kookaburra ball on his maiden Australia tour, Deep said, “I played just 5 Tests before heading to Australia and didn’t get many overs to bowl because we have world-class spinners who do the heavy lifting at home. So, I knew, I would get one spell at max. This was my first overseas tour, and it was also my first experience bowling with a Kookaburra ball,” Akash said.

Deep didn’t play the last game at Sydney due to a back injury.