Jasprit Bumrah’s amazing skill-set gives India a realistic chance of winning the World Cup but a “freak” called David Warner might just retain it for Australia, feels 2015 World Cup-winning captain Michael Clarke.
In an exclusiveinterview with PTI, former Aussie skipper Clarke explained why India andAustralia are top three contenders while making it clear that the coveted Cupmay not “come home” for the hosts contrary to what the likes of Kevin Pietersen and Michael Vaughan arewishing.
One of the most delightful batsmen to have played the game,Clarke is in awe of the legend of Bumrah which has been on the upswing for twoyears now.
“I think there is nothing that he (Bumrah) doesn’thave. He is fit and healthy. I hope he stays that way as he would play a bigpart in India’s success in this World Cup,” Clarke observed.
But Bumrah will face quite a challenge from Australia,especially Warner, who has already scored 447 runs in six games with twohundreds.
“I did expect an exceptional performance from Davidbecause he is an exceptional player. He is a freak. He is the X-factor in thisteam. If Australia go on to win the World Cup, David Warner will be the highestrun-getter in my opinion,” opined Clarke and then went on to separatelyanalyse what made the two individuals special.
Questioned as to what makes Bumrah such a difficultproposition for batsmen, Clarke elaborated, “With the brand new ball, hecan swing and seam it. When the ball is doing nothing in the middle overs, hehas the extra pace to trouble batsmen.”
“He can bowl close to 150 clicks and then at the death,he bowls those yorkers as good as anyone else. And if there is reverse swing,he is a genius,” the former Australian captain summed up the Indian pacespearhead in a nutshell.
Virat Kohli or for that matter no captain could have askedfor a better ‘Go To’ option than Bumrah, according to Clarke.
“As a captain, probably, you need someone like him tothrow the ball to when you need wickets. He can open the bowling, bowl that35th over when nothing is happening or bowl those last four overs at the death,which can win India a World Cup final,” said the veteran of 115 Tests and245 ODIs.
Would Bumrah been as good as Wasim Akram had there been justone new ball instead of two?
“I think he would have. He is that good that he wouldhave found out ways to adapt,” the former Australian skipper said.
Nothing makes Clarke more happier than to see Warner inprime form putting all the controversies behind him.
Warner was roundly criticised for his slow batting againstIndia but that is the approach which is now giving Australia a real chanceagainst a lot of other teams.
“ODI is different from T20s and it has taken him a bitof time to get back into ODI format. He has been patient at the start of hisinnings.
“People are saying David Warner is not at his best. Buthe has had two scores of 150. That shows how good a player he is and he is nowa leading run-scorer in the tournament,” Clarke looked excited and happyspeaking about his former teammate.
“David has probably played a little bit differently towhat everybody expected at the start of the World Cup. But he has played smart.He has batted for a period of time. Remember before he got back into ODIcricket, he was back in T20 cricket after a 12-month lay-off.”
As far as captaincy is concerned, Aaron Finch’s leadershiphas been “impressive” according to Clarke, who lauded Kohli for usingtwo wrist spinners, which he termed both “positive and aggressive”.
“India is a very skilful team and I think they havemade the right decision in going in with two wrist spinners. That’s theaggressive approach and that probably made the difference with two-wickettaking bowlers in those middle overs.
“Virat’s captaincy has been very good so far in thetournament. They are playing unbelievable cricket at the moment,” saidClarke, who has always rated the Indian captain highly.
What is working for Finch at the moment is his own formwhich has been superb. The Australian skipper is fourth in the run-getters’list with 396 runs that includes a hundred and three half-centuries.
“I think he is continuously getting better. He has beenexceptional with the bat. It always takes away a bit of pressure fromleadership when you are scoring runs. He has used his bowlers well.”
The Australian humour comes out when asked if he, like theEngland fans, thought that the “Cupis coming home”.
“Well, I am not sure if everyone was thinking that. Iknow Kevin Pietersen and Michael Vaughan were thinking that. I wonder if theywill change their mind now. It’s still a long way to go,” he grinned.
“We will find out how good an ODI team England are now because they will probably need to win 2 out of the next 3 games and they have got Australia, India and New Zealand to play. “If they do it and go on to win the World Cup, it will be a fantastic achievement. I would be commentating on the June 25th game (England vs Australia) at Lord’s. I can’t wait for that game to begin,” he said. PTI