Jasprit Bumrah was someone we all wanted to represent the country: Priyank Panchal

Former Gujarat top-order batter Priyank Panchal has stated that the Indian pace spearhead Jasprit Bumrah always had the spark to represent the Indian team at the highest level. Notably, Bumrah made a name for himself while playing for his state team, Gujarat.

In the Ranji Trophy 2016-17 season, Bumrah played a crucial role for Gujarat, scalping 6/29 against Jharkhand in the semi-final. Furthermore, he picked a total of 24 wickets in seven games in that season as Gujarat defeated Mumbai in the grand finale.

"I think he had that spark and that vibe and the willingness to represent the country at the highest level, and even at that time, he was so competitive. And you can imagine that if you get a chance with that competitiveness in the next level, you will definitely be successful. So he's successful because he has worked here,” Panchal told India Today in an exclusive interview.

Furthermore, Panchal asserted that Bumrah was someone we all wanted to represent the country, as he has a different kind of bowling technique. Notably, Bumrah went on to emerge as one of the top pacers in the world.

"He has faced so many challenges outside of cricket. He was someone we all wanted to represent the country because he has that different kind of bowling technique. You don't get to see this kind of bowler very often. Like you can see, I think in one in 20 years, I would say this kind of bowlers. And doing it so consistently is also a thing. So I think credit goes to him because he worked hard. He learned from all the experiences and he's still learning," said Panchal.

Moreover, Panchal also shared his experience of facing him in the nets sessions. He reckoned that Bumrah used to have bouncers and yorkers in whatever balls he was bowling in the nets, bringing out his competitive nature.

"Bumrah is so competitive. Like even if I play a cover drive, the next ball would be either a bouncer or a yorker. Even in the nets, like we were playing 40 to 50 balls in nets and out of those 40 to 50 balls, he must be bowling, I think 6 to 8 balls to each batsman. Out of 6 to 8 balls we will be having two bouncers. Then when you are done. That's it. 1 to 2 balls we have to leave it because it's like we were preparing for the day game. So that's the story," he concluded.

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