The recently concluded Lord's Test match between India and England would always go down as one of the memorable games of cricket. Some of the unforgettable moments include KL Rahul's stylish hundred to James Anderson's five-wicket haul, the Jasprit Bumrah and Mohammed Shami show with the bat and a heroic performance by the Indian bowlers which resulted in a 151-run win for Virat Kohli and his men. One of the unlikely duels of the match involved England's James Anderson and Jasprit Bumrah. It all started when Anderson came out to bat and Bumrah attacked him with a flurry of bouncers, some of which hit the helmet and his body as well. IND vs ENG 2021: Dawid Malan Added to Hosts’ Squad for Third Test in Headingley
Ravichandran Ashwin, in his YouTube show 'Kutti Story', revealed the details about what went through between the two fast bowlers. At the end of the day's play, Bumrah patted Anderson on their way back to the dressing room and the latter wasn't too happy with it. Ashwin opened up on the conversation that the two speedsters had. "The thing was, Jimmy was like, ‘Hey mate! Why are you bowling so fast? Am I doing the same to you?’. The beauty about that is, looks like Jimmy had told Boom (Bumrah), ‘All this while, you were bowling in 80 m/h; suddenly on seeing me, why are you bowling in 90 m/h?’," Ashwin said on his show which also involved India's fielding coach R Sridhar.
Watch the video here:
The off-spinner further added that he was surprised at such a statement coming from a cricketer like Anderson. He added, "What was surprising to me what that kind of question. I agree, maybe he was shaken. Getting hit on the helmet is definitely not easy and I empathize with him, but still, that kind of a statement coming from Jimmy was a surprise to me."
Things were however different during the Indian innings. Wickets of Rishabh Pant and Ishant Sharma early on in the final day tilted the game heavily in favour of the hosts but the landscape of the game dramatically changed when Bumrah walked out to bat, partnering Mohammed Shami at the other end. England's ploy of rattling Bumrah by sledging him backfired on them. The Bumrah-Shami duo unleashed a barrage of attacking shots and hit the English bowlers out of the park. The duo were involved in a game-changing 89-run unbeaten partnership that completely changed the complexion of the game.
England then under pressure to chase down 272 to win, fell to the Indian bowlers who bowled with intensity and firepower. Eventually, they were bowled out of 120 runs, handing India a memorable win courtesy of which, they have taken a 1-0 lead in the five-match Test series. The next match would be played in Headingley from August 25.
(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Aug 20, 2021 09:51 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).