'Virat said he is the toughest to face among all bowlers': Bharat Arun names India pacer who impressed Kohli in the nets
Former India bowling coach Bharat Arun recalls how an India pacer had left Virat Kohli impressed with his bowling in the nets, which then paved the way for his Test debut.
Bharat Arun will always be known as the man responsible for triggering India's rise as a formidable fast-bowling unit in Test cricket. With him serving as bowling coach, the Indian pace attack emerged as arguably the world's best and one that was regularly pick 20 wickets in a Test match away from home. The reason behind India’s back-to-back Test series wins in Australia and their phenomenal show in England has plenty to do with how the pacers performed.
The pace bowling duo of Jasprit Bumrah and Mohammed Shami have wreaked havoc wherever they have played, and with Ishant Sharma, Mohammed Siraj and Shardul Thakur, have made life difficult for the oppositions. Arun, in a freewheeling chat, recalled how plans were being put in place for Jasprit Bumrah's Test debut in the 2018 Test series in South Africa, pointing out one particular incident that went a long way in the pacer earning his Test cap.
"We had 10-12 days for practice before the start of that South Africa series in 2018. During that period, Virat was extremely impressed with Bumrah in the nets - he said, "He [Bumrah] is the most difficult to face amongst all the bowlers we have." So, he instantly decided that Bumrah would be playing in the first Test, and his career took off from there," Arun told Sportstar.
Former India coach Ravi Shastri had shed some light on how Bumrah's Test debut came about, a topic on which Arun added. He recalls how Bumrah – who had then established himself as India’s strike bowler in ODIs and T20Is – was always passionate about representing the country in Tests, and when Arun shared this thought with Shastri, things got moving.
"Ravi and I had a discussion... He wanted me to give Bumrah a call when we were in Kolkata and tell him that he may be on the tour to South Africa to play Test cricket. Bumrah, previously, when he was part of the ODI teams, constantly told me that his dream was to be a successful Test cricketer," Arun explained.
"When I told Ravi about this, he said Bumrah adds a huge dimension to the bowling. He was keen on unleashing him in South Africa. He had a word with Virat, who then spoke to selectors, and that's how Bumrah, the Test phenomenon, came into being."
