File photo of Jasprit Bumrah.© BCCI
The Indian cricket team travelled to Australia after suffering a 3-0 whitewash at the hands of New Zealand. To make things worse, regular captain Rohit Sharma missed the first game due to the birth of his second child. As a blessing in disguise came up Jasprit Bumrah as stand-in India captain. He not only led the side to a 295-run victory over Australia but also played an intrumental role in the win. Bumrah picked 8 wickets in the game, including a five-wicket haul, and bagged the Player of the Match award.
While talking about his contribution in the first Test against AUstralia in Perth, former India player Ashish Nehra said that the player would have bagged a massive sum, had he come at IPL auction. Nehra is the coach of Gujarat Titans. He won the Indian Premier League (IPL) title with the side in 2022 in the role.
Notably, Bumrah was retained as the first-choice by Mumbai Indians for Rs 18 crore ahead of IPL 2025 auction. The right-arm pacer made his IPL debut in 2013 and since then he has always been a part of the MI franchise. Before every auction, MI retain the player and as a result, he has never been under the hammer at the bidding war.
While Bumrah’s value in auction is yet to be discovered, Nehra feels that even a purse of Rs 520 crore would not have been enough for teams to buy him.
“As a bowler Jasprit Bumrah has done this numerous times. Rohit Sharma is not playing and you’re captaining the team in the first match in the tour. Obviously there has to be an extra amount of pressure. But the way Bumrah handled the pressure it’s extremely praiseworthy,” Ashish Nehra told Star Sports.
“The way Bumrah led the team following the 3-0 whitewash against New Zealand on home soil it’s brilliant to witness. You can’t beat Jassi (Jasprit Bumrah). If Bumrah was in the auction then anything would have happened. Even a purse of 520 crore would have been not enough for the IPL teams,” he further added.
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