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Usman Khawaja said Jasprit Bumrah would have been an ‘absolute nightmare’ in Sydney.
Jasprit Bumrah (AP Photo)
Usman Khawaja was relieved to not face ‘absolute nightmare’ Jasprit Bumrah in the final innings of the Sydney Test of the 2024-25 Border-Gavaskar Trophy. Khawaja, who got out to Bumrah in six of his nine innings before Sunday, admitted he was ‘just getting Bumrha’d’ in the series and called the Indian pacer the toughest he has ever faced.
Bumrah took 32 wickets in the five Tests at an average of 13.06. But excessive workload caused a back spasm for him in the first innings in Sydney, preventing him from playing a part in India’s defense of 162 to save the series. Australia chased it down with six wickets to spare and though Bumrah won the Player of the Series award, the hosts took the series 3-1.
“I was just getting Bumrah’d,” Khawaja said on ABC Sport. “It’s a shame he was (injured) but thank god for us. Today would’ve been an absolute nightmare facing him on that wicket. As soon as we didn’t see him out there we thought ‘alright, we’ve got a chance here’. He’s the toughest bowler I’ve ever faced.”
Travis Head, who got out to Bumrah four times as well, seconded Khawaja’s thoughts.
“I think there were 15 people really pleased that Bumrah didn’t bowl today. He’s a great performer, he had an exceptional tour.”
Head made 34 not out in his 46-run stand with Khawaja for the fourth wicket, which stabilized things for Australia after Prasidh Krishna’s three early strikes.
“Nice to contribute, I don’t worry about the results too much. Two great teams, felt like it would be nice if I could come out and contribute. Same approach as always, felt like I was moving well, knew that if I could build a partnership with Usman we would be well placed.
“The last series here they played exceptionally well, even in Perth they put us on the backfoot. Been a crazy five Tests, the guys that got through all five are probably looking forward to some time off. There’s been a lot of media attention too.”
He concluded by praising his SunRisers Hyderabad (SRH) teammate and speaking about his plans before the tour of Sri Lanka.
“Nitish too, I already knew how good he was. They have a lot of players that play well. We played extremely well too and stepped it up. I’m wrecked, I don’t know what I’m going to do for the next 10 days. I’ll look after myself and get prepared for Sri Lanka,” he said.
(This story has not been edited by News18 staff and is published from a syndicated news agency feed – IANS)
- Location :
Sydney, Australia
