Olympic gold medalist and one of India’s finest athletes, Neeraj Chopra, has advised Jasprit Bumrah to strengthen his run-up to boost the velocity of his bowling.
The ace javelin thrower attended the 2023 World Cup final at Narendra Modi Stadium and saw Bumrah bowl live against Australia. The right-arm bowler bowled Mitchell Marsh and Steve Smith, but Australia’s opener Travis Head’s brilliant century enabled them chase down 241 and win their sixth ODI World Cup.
Chopra chose Bumrah as his favorite bowler and made the following remark to the Indian Express:
“I like Jasprit Bumrah, I find his action unique. I feel he should lengthen his run-up to add more pace. As a javelin thrower, we often discuss how bowlers can increase their pace if they start their run-up from a little further back. I like Bumrah’s style.”
Neeraj Chopra
Notably, Bumrah suffered a pair of injuries in late December of last year, ruling him out for the majority of the first half of 2023.
Upon his comeback in August, his bowling run-up was a tad shorter. Despite that, his speed didn’t lessen too much. In fact, his accuracy appeared to improve.
“Maybe, somewhere mentally, the Australian team held an edge” – Neeraj Chopra on World Cup final
Neeraj Chopra said that he doesn’t understand some cricket terminology, but he was able to discern the speed of the final as it gradually switched out of India’s hands in the second innings, as well as the difference in body language between the two sides.
“Virat (Kohli) bhai and KL Rahul were batting when I reached. There are some technical things that I don’t understand. Batting in the daytime wasn’t very easy. In the evening, I think, batting became easy. But our guys tried. Sometimes, it’s just not our day. But, frankly, everyone had a great tournament.”
Neeraj Chopra
He Added:
“Maybe, somewhere mentally, the Australian team held an edge at the start. When they bowled, I found they had a strong mindset. In the end, they had completely flipped it over. They were confident about their game.”
Neeraj Chopra