JOIN USThe consistency of Jasprit Bumrah in limited overs finally fetched him the much awaited Test call. Rohit Sharma, Bumrah's captain in Mumbai Indians, was delighted for him and said he has been rewarded for his work in recent months.
Bumrah has been picked for South Africa tour and Rohit felt the 23-year-old paceman has set a benchmark for youngsters.
"It is a great boost for him to be picked. He is looking forward to it. For a while, he was wanting to be the part of the Test team. It is all the reward for what he has done in the ODI and T20 formats. And how he has improved himself (bowling and fitness) over the last year or so. It is a lesson for many cricketers that if you put in the hard yards, you will get results and be rewarded. Bumrah has been rewarded for the things he has done in past few years," Rohit said.
The 30-year-old called Bumrah a focused and disciplined cricketer.
"He has played with me in Mumbai and I have only seen him grow with every passing game. Every series that he has played, he has come up new strategies and new plans. It is good to see he has matured as a bowler now. He understands what he needs to do and what team expects out of him.
"He is a very focused guy, very disciplined in terms of his work ethics. This is what is giving him the results on the field. Yes, he had a good month and a half time off and he went to NCA, worked on his body again and rejuvenated. He looks a lot fresher now. Hopefully he can do the job for us."
Kedar Jadhav suffered a hamstring injury and has been ruled out. Tamil Nadu youngster Washington Sundar has been brought in to replace the Maharashtra middle-order batsman.
There was also a late scare with opener Shikhar Dhawan coming down with a fever but the left-hander allayed any fears as he strode out for a net session on Saturday.