“Bumrah is nowhere close to Shaheen’s level”

Former Pakistan all-rounder Abdul Razzaq has once again taken a jibe at Jasprit Bumrah’s bowling ability. He opined that Bumrah is not even close to Pakistan speedster Shaheen Afridi with respect to the quality of bowling.

Bumrah has been in and out of the Indian team for the past several months due to injuries and hasn’t been able to make a match-winning impact of late. However, he has had success, especially in Test cricket, and has proven his consistency across formats whenever fit.

Yet, speaking to a local news channel in Pakistan, here’s what Abdul Razzaq had to say about the comparison between Shaheen Afridi and Jasprit Bumrah:

“Shaheen Afridi is way better than Jasprit Bumrah. Bumrah is nowhere close to Shaheen’s level.”

This isn’t first time Abdul Razzaq has taken a dig at Jasprit Bumrah

Razzaq, who is also a member of Pakistan’s new selection panel, has made several such comments on Bumrah even in the past. In 2019, in an interview with Cricket Pakistan, the former all-rounder opened up on what he could have done had he played in Bumrah’s era.

He called Bumrah a ‘baby bowler’ and stated:

“I have played against great bowlers like Glenn McGrath and Wasim Akram, so Bumrah is a baby bowler in front of me and I could have easily dominated and attacked him.”

Bumrah and Shaheen are both out with long-term injuries as of now. Both are crucial to their team’s chances across formats and debates will naturally continue about who is the better bowler.

India are set to play a crucial Test series at home against Australia and will miss Bumrah’s services in the first two Tests. They will hope that he is back to full fitness soon so that he can be drafted into the squad from the third Test.