Jasprit Bumrah became the sixth Indian fast bowler to achieve 400 international wickets during the first Test against Bangladesh, as he picked up four wickets in the first innings and one more in the second to take his tally to 401. The man second on the list, Zaheer Khan, heaped praise on Bumrah, stating that Bumrah will keep tumbling records, and that he has earned the accolade of being the best bowler in the world, at least when it comes to fast bowlers.
"This is a huge achievement for a bowler. He will continue to chase these records. He now belongs in such a class that he is the No. 1 bowler in the world when it comes to pacers," said Zaheer, speaking on the Cricbuzz YouTube channel.
"All I hope is that he stays aware of his body, and keep his energy and fitness up. The more he plays, the more the records will tumble," said Zaheer.
Zaheer stated that the pitch condition goes out of the question for world-class bowlers like Bumrah. For them, he said that the mentality is to understand how to pick up wickets in conditions that don't suit them.
'#Bumrah needs to stay fit; will continue to tumble records’@imZaheer lauds the bowler, on #CricbuzzChatter#INDvBANpic.twitter.com/eiPGp2ON6R
— Cricbuzz (@cricbuzz) September 24, 2024
"Great bowlers do not think about the conditions. They only think of which weapons will work for them in unfavourable conditions," Zaheer elaborated.
"He is a complete bowler. You think of the conditions in terms of when to use swing, seam, yorkers or slower ones, not in the mentality that 'Oh, the conditions aren't in our favour'," he added.
Bumrah helped India bundle out Bangladesh for just 149 in the first innings of the first Test, helping India achieve a mammoth lead of 227 runs. His four wickets took him to the 400-wicket mark in international cricket, joining Kapil Dev, Zaheer Khan, Javagal Srinath, Mohammed Shami and Ishant Sharma in an elite list.