Bumrah credits India's calmness for victory over Pakistan

Published at : 10 June 2024, 06:35 pm
Bumrah credits India's calmness for victory over Pakistan
India’s Jasprit Bumrah celebrates the fall of a Pakistan wicket during Sunday’s Twenty20 World Cup match in New York Photo: AFP

Having only made 119 on the tricky New York surface, India saw Pakistan respond with a measured reply but Bumrah provided the crucial breakthrough for the favorites.

Bumrah took 3/14 with big wickets at crucial moments, including Pakistan's top scorer Mohammad Rizwan, who after making a patient 31 from 44 balls, was looking like a match-winner himself until he was clean bowled by Bumrah, reports AFP.

"The biggest positive for us was the calmness because when we were batting in the morning, there was a lot more help," said Bumrah, noting the damper conditions after pre-match rain which turned to sunshine later in the day.

"And then when we started bowling, the skies opened up and the ball stopped seaming and there wasn't a lot of lateral movement. So we had to be more consistent and more accurate. And we as a unit were very calm and very clear on what we wanted to do. So very happy that as a unit we were able to contribute and created that pressure and then we were able to get the win," he said.

Bumrah said he had learnt over time that in situations where the pitch can offer some help, it remains crucial not to go too far with attacking intent.

"In that aspect, experience does help you a little bit because whenever there is help, you can get excited, you can try and go pole hunting, you can bowl bouncers, you can bowl out-swingers, in-swingers but you don't have to do that," he said.

"I have learned that over the experience. But this time, the ball was not doing a lot. Yes, we did create pressure. Little bit of lateral movement was there but not too much. Not as pronounced as the last game," he said.

Bumrah is in a rich spell of form, following a strong Indian Premier League campaign with a 2/6 spell against Ireland in the Group A opener before Sunday's show.

But amid the heady praise Bumrah, who suffered injury issues last year, said he was quick to remember how opinions can change.

"A year ago the same people were saying I might not play again and my career is over. But I don't look at that. For me, I try to solve the problem that is there in front of me and try to control the controllables," he said.

"I was trying to focus on what is the best option over here on a wicket like this. How do I make shot making difficult? What are the best options for me? So that way I try to stay in the present and focus on what I have to do. Because if I look at the outside noise, if I look at people and pressure and emotion takes over, then things don't really work for me," he said.

It was an approach that Bumrah said the team took as a collective despite the huge pressure that comes with the expectations around the India side, especially against Pakistan.

"Not at any stage did I feel that the panic had spread in the team and we were looking too far ahead. So that's a really positive sign," he said.

MSH

Mushfiqur to play for Fortune Barishal in BPL 2024

Published at : 24 September 2023, 03:42 pm
Mushfiqur to play for Fortune Barishal in BPL 2024

Bangladeshi wicketkeeper-batter Mushfiqur Rahim is set to feature for Fortune Barishal in the forthcoming Bangladesh Premier League (BPL).

 

Mushfiqur had played for Sylhet Strikers in the last edition. His price was fixed at 80 lakhs in the players' draft according to the category. Which means he was in 'A' category.

The top category player will play along with other star players like Tamim Iqbal, Mahmudullah, Mehidy Hasan Miraz, and Khaled Ahmed in Fortune Barishal.

Neymar quits PSG to sign for Saudi Arabia’s Al-Hilal

Published at : 20 September 2023, 05:06 pm
Neymar quits PSG to sign for Saudi Arabia’s Al-Hilal

Neymar said he was relishing “new challenges and opportunities in new places” after he joined Saudi Arabia’s Al-Hilal from Paris Saint-Germain on a two-year deal Tuesday, becoming the latest big name lured to the oil-rich Gulf state.

The Brazil forward, 31, ends a six-year stay in the French capital and follows in the footsteps of Cristiano Ronaldo, Karim Benzema and Sadio Mane in swapping Europe for the Middle East.

“I have achieved a lot in Europe and enjoyed special times, but I have always wanted to be a global player and test myself with new challenges and opportunities in new places,” Neymar said in a statement from the Saudi Pro League.

“I want to write new sporting history, and the Saudi Pro League has tremendous energy and quality players at the moment,” he added.

Neymar ‘in negotiations’ over Saudi move as Mbappe returns to PSG good books

Published at : 20 September 2023, 05:05 pm
Neymar ‘in negotiations’ over Saudi move as Mbappe returns to PSG good books

Neymar was “in negotiations” on Sunday to become the latest football superstar to decamp for Saudi Arabia, leaving Paris Saint-Germain just as Kylian Mbappe was brought back in from the cold by the French champions.

A source close to PSG told AFP that 31-year-old Neymar “no longer figures in the club or manager’s plans” with the Brazilian immediately linked to Al-Hilal in the Gulf kingdom.

Another source in Saudi Arabia said that “direct negotiations” between Neymar’s agents and the Public Investment Fund (PIF) were ongoing.

PSG get better of Dortmund in Champions League opener

Published at : 20 September 2023, 05:03 pm
PSG get better of Dortmund in Champions League opener

Paris Saint-Germain got their Champions League campaign off to a winning start on Tuesday as a Kylian Mbappe penalty set them up for a 2-0 victory over Borussia Dortmund at the Parc des Princes.

The French champions had dominated the first half without overly troubling the Dortmund defence, but they went ahead four minutes after the break when Mbappe scored a spot-kick awarded for a Niklas Suele handball.

Achraf Hakimi added a memorable second, and PSG could have won the Group F encounter by a far more handsome margin in the end.

The result immediately puts them in control of the group, after AC Milan and Newcastle United drew 0-0 earlier, and coach Luis Enrique will hope they can build on this performance when they visit the English side next in a fortnight.

"It was an almost perfect evening," said Luis Enrique.