Chennai, Sep 20: On a challenging Chepauk pitch, Jasprit Bumrah emerged as the standout Indian bowler, clinching impressive figures of 4-50 to bowl out Bangladesh for 149 in the ongoing first Test at MA Chidambaram Stadium on Friday. Bumrah disclosed that he had to innovate with his deliveries since his usual stock balls were ineffective on the second day. He detailed how he orchestrated the dismissal of Mushfiqur Rahim despite receiving little help from the pitch.

“The ball was quite old and offered minimal movement, but there was some unpredictable bounce. When I tried pitching fuller, there was hardly any deviation. My focus shifted to making run-scoring tougher for the batsmen. Fortunately, I managed to induce an outside edge,” Bumrah explained to JioCinema after stumps on Day 2. He elaborated on the adjustments he had to make due to the pitch conditions. “Bowling length balls wasn’t working, nor was there any reverse swing. As a bowler, you need to adapt when the wicket isn’t assisting you. I used a tactic from my domestic cricket experience, which proved effective today.”

Bumrah provided insights into his strategic use of bouncers during the match. “In Test cricket, I usually don’t bowl many bouncers. However, given the harsh weather and my recent return to Test cricket, adjustments were necessary. The ball got wet from sweat, making the seam slippery. Hence, I had to explore different options to secure wickets and hinder run-scoring. These are strategies you learn as a lower-order batter too,” he added. Bumrah also shared his discussions with captain Rohit Sharma regarding their tactical bowling approach for the day.

“Rohit has a deep understanding of our bowlers. The weather was tough, and after a long break from Test cricket, everyone needed to find their rhythm. We talked about employing short, effective spells. We have fast bowlers eager to bowl quick and spinners capable of creating an impact. With a new ball offering some lateral movement, we aimed to capitalize on that,” Bumrah noted. “We didn’t focus on bowling fuller due to inconsistent swing; instead, we quickly adjusted our angles and I bowled around the wicket. The new ball did provide some assistance, and we leveraged that,” he concluded.

India ended Day 2 at 81/3 with a commanding lead of 308 runs. Shubman Gill (33*) and Rishabh Pant (12*) will look to extend this lead while navigating early seaming conditions on Saturday. Earlier, Ravichandran Ashwin’s sixth Test century (113), combined with significant contributions from Ravindra Jadeja (86) and Yashasvi Jaiswal (56), propelled India to 376 in their first innings after opting to bat first on Thursday.

India’s stellar batting performance set a robust foundation, further bolstered by Bumrah’s exceptional bowling display, positioning them strongly in the first Test against Bangladesh at the MA Chidambaram Stadium.