Jasprit Bumrah is back and how. Against Ireland in the first T20I, it took Bumrah just two balls to remind the world of his greatness. So what if this was his first match after a gap of 11 months? So what if it had taken him months to even pick up a cricket ball after recovering from a stress fracture? So what if there were critics doubting his effectiveness after such a long time away from the game? So what? Bumrah was having none of it. As promised, he did not hold back and announced his return to international cricket with two wickets in his first over.
![Jasprit Bumrah cleaned up Andrew Balbirnie Jasprit Bumrah cleaned up Andrew Balbirnie](https://www.hindustantimes.com/ht-img/img/2023/08/18/550x309/Screenshot_2023-08-18_200442_1692369403645_1692369417538.png)
The conditions were heavily in favour of swing bowling. There was a constant breeze in Malahide that was always going to give the batters a hard time, but since when is Bumrah known for swinging the ball? The Ireland top-order found out that it was since August 18, 2023.
Bumrah, who is also leading India in this three-match T20I series becoming the first fast bowler to captain India in the shortest of the game, did not start in an ideal manner. His first delivery was a loosener on the pads of Ireland opener Andrew Balbirnie, who clipped it to get off the mark with a boundary. Bumrah wore a wry smile while heading back to his mark and also told the mid-off fielder that the ball was swinging.
He ran in, got his line right and swung the ball back into the right-hander from outside off stump. Balbirnie simply pushed at the ball, leaving a huge gap between his bat and pad. The ball took the faintest of inside edges and crashed onto the stumps.
Bumrah extended his arms and ran towards the left of the pitch – this was a celebration that every Indian fan missed for the last year or so. A ball later, Bumrah dished out a vicious in-swinging yorker to new-man Lorcan Tucker, who somehow managed to get his bat down in time and kept his pads away from the line.
Watch Video: Bumrah strickes twice in his first over against Ireland
Realising that Bumrah has already settled into a nice rhythm, Tucker decided to take the India pace spearhead on. But his method was wrong. He walked across his stumps and tried to flick Bumrah over fine leg but the kind of swing Bumrah was getting, made that shot very difficult. Tucker failed to get the desired connection. The ball ballooned up in the air and Sanju Samson took a simple catch after taking a few steps to his left.
Just like that, on his much-anticipated return to international cricket, Bumrah picked up two wickets in the very first over. Is it a sign of things to come? With Asia Cup and World Cup knocking on the doors, the Indian team management will certainly hope so.