BUMRAH CASTS SPELL ON OZ

Stand-in captain's inspiring show (4/17) puts India in command on Day 1 after early collapse

- GOMESH S

AT approximately 12.35 PM IST on Friday, when Usman Khawaja ran back to catch Nitish K Reddy out for 41 in The Perth Stadium, every Indian fan whether they were watching from the stands or glued on to television/mobile screens would have let out a sigh of frustration.

Every possible nightmare scenario they would have imagined before going to sleep on the eve of the Border-Gavaskar Trophy had come true. India, led by stand-in captain Jasprit Bumrah, opted to bat first on a pitch with ample grass cover and had been bowled out for 150 in less than 50 overs (49.4). As many as seven batters had gotten out in single digits. Yashasvi Jaiswal's expected struggles came to light. Virat Kohli was bounced out by Josh Hazlewood. Devdutt Padikkal got out for a 23-ball duck. So much so that, if not for the rescue from Rishabh Pant (37) and Reddy, they would have ended with another double digit total.

As Reddy took the long walk back, many questions lingered. Did India make the right choice by picking Reddy, Washington Sundar and Harshit Rana ahead of R Ashwin and Ravindra Jadeja? Was the decision to bat first wrong? The biggest of all, however, was what happens after Bumrah finishes his spell.

In less than an hour, the captain, and the best all-format bowler in the world, shattered all the doubts, lifting the spirits of millions of Indian fans.