Jasprit Bumrah creates history, becomes first Indian pacer to top ICC Test Rankings
Team India pacer Jasprit Bumrah continued to scale new heights as he became the first Indian pacer to top the ICC Men’s Test Bowling Rankings after his stupendous bowling performance in the Visakhapatnam Test against England which earned him the Player of the Match award and helped India draw level 1-1 in the five-match series. Bumrah's masterful bowling saw him scalp nine wickets and leapfrog Pat Cummins, Kagiso Rabada, and Ravichandran Ashwin to attain 881 rating points and jump to the number one spot, becoming just the fourth Indian to achieve the feat after Bishan Singh Bedi, Ravindra Jadeja and Ashwin.
Ashwin, with 904, and Jadeja, with 899, are the only India bowlers to have aggregated more rating points than Bumrah (881). The two India all-rounders also have the unique distinction of being jointly top-ranked, in March 2017.
Ever since he burst onto the Test scene at Cape Town in South Africa with four wickets in the match on an impressive debut, Bumrah has mesmerised the cricket world with his speed, swing, seam, accuracy, and variations. With a deadly combo of hard work, skills, adaptability, and tactical acumen, the 30-year-old pacer has consistently delivered game-changing spells and match-winning performances for India in all formats.
A consistent performer, Bumrah became the fastest Indian pacer to reach 150 Test wickets in the Visakhapatnam Test, achieving the feat in 34 Tests. Overall, he's taken 155 Test wickets from 34 matches, including 10 five-wicket hauls, possessing an impressive average of 20.19 and a strike rate of 44.5.
