London: India pace bowler Jasprit Bumrah attributed his good performance in all formats of the game to keeping a level head and not getting carried away by applause or being bogged down by criticism.
Bumrah came up with a sterling performance on The Kennington Oval pitch assisting swing in the opening One-day International against England, notching up his best bowling figures of 6/19 as India thrashed England by 10 wickets to take a 1-0 lead in the three-match series.
“I don’t pay too much attention to the applause or criticism I get. I just try to bowl my best. I enjoy every format of the game and try whatever is in my hand… I respect people’s opinions but I don’t take them seriously, be it good or bad. I am very grateful for the applause I get, but always try to keep a stable head,” said Bumrah on how he copes with bouquets and brickbats.
The pacer also raised a pertinent point about playing non-stop cricket, saying while it is difficult at times to switch mentally and physically between different formats, it can be achieved with a bit of “mental adjustment”, “remaining fresh” and “taking care of your body”.
In the course of just a few days, India have played the rescheduled fifth Test at Edgbaston, a three-match T20I series and are now playing an ODI series against hosts England.
“It’s very difficult that just a few days back we were playing a Test match and then we have played the T20s and are now playing one-day cricket. Mental adjustment and remaining fresh is the most important thing. Taking care of the body, sometimes having to sleep for 8-9 or even 10 hours to recover, as fast bowling is a tough job and your body takes a lot of strain.
“Having said that, we are professional cricketers. As kids, it was our dream to play for India so if we are doing that now, we cannot be complaining. We have to put our best foot forward,” opined Bumrah.
The pacer said he was happy to come up with such a superb bowling performance against England as “you want to test yourself against the very best”.
“No doubt about the quality of the England side. They’ve got a lot of good results and whenever you do well against a very good team, you feel good. You want to test yourself against very good players in difficult conditions. I’m very happy with the overall performance.”
–IANS
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