Bumrah named ICC Men's Test Cricketer of the Year

In 2024, India's pace spearhead took 71 wickets in 13 Tests at a jaw-dropping average of 14.92

- Samreen Razzaqui

NEW DELHI: A day after British rock band Coldplay's vocalist Chris Martin dedicated a song to India's star pacer Jasprit Bumrah during their concert in Ahmedabad, the 31-year-old was crowned the ICC Men's Test Cricketer of the Year. "O Jasprit Bumrah, my beautiful brother. The best bowler in the whole of cricket...," Martin sang in his tribute. "We did not enjoy watching you destroy England, wicket after wicket."

It wasn't just England that felt the heat of Bumrah's brilliance. In the last year, South Africa, Bangladesh, New Zealand and Australia were all subjected to the devastating accuracy that formed the basis of Martin's ode on Sunday.

The right-arm pacer amassed 71 wickets in just 13 matches at a jaw-dropping average of 14.92 and a strike rate of 30.16. Way lower than the 17 others who have claimed 70 or more wickets in a year. The club includes legends such as Shane Warne, M Muralidaran, Dennis Lillee and Allan Donald. Bumrah was in a league of his own this year. For context, the second-placed Gus Atkinson of England took 52 wickets in 11 matches.

Virat Kohli was the last Indian to win the award in 2018. However, Bumrah is only the fourth Indian bowler to take more than 70 Test wickets in a year, joining legends like Ravichandran Ashwin, Anil Kumble and Kapil Dev.

When Bumrah first came onto the international scene, it was clear that his nearly inimitable unique bowling style, characterized by a relatively short run-up and a deceptive release was his unique selling point.

He had already made the waves in domestic cricket but the risk of a bowler with distinctive style getting decoded at the international level continued to hover over the years, as it has with several bowlers all over the world.