Ahead of the five-match Test series between India and Australia, Pakistan interim head coach Jason Gillespie opened up on the similarities between star pacers Pat Cummins and Jasprit Bumrah. The former Australia pacer Gillespie also highlighted the importance of Bumrah in the current Indian Test set-up. The five-match Test series between India and Australia will get underway with the first Test in Perth, starting November 22. Gillespie gave his insights on Cummins and Bumrah's biggest strength, adding that both have the knack of taking wickets when other bowlers struggle in the team to find breakthroughs.
"Their major strength is they are pretty relentless in attacking the batters. They have a good pace, bowl challenging lines and lengths. They are always asking questions about batsmen's technique. They are always making sure that the batsman has to make good decisions or they will get themselves out. So... they are relentless with their accuracy and discipline but they also can bowl those unplayable deliveries. Whether it swings really late or it just has that extra half-yard of pace or it just does something off the surface which not a lot of bowlers have. They just have a knack for creating a wicket when there doesn't seem to be a wicket. They just create opportunities seemingly out of nowhere," Gillespie told The Indian Express.
India will miss the services of pacer Mohammed Shami, who is yet to fully recover from his injury, followed by surgery earlier this year. He last played for India during the 2023 ODI World Cup final last year in November.
While insisting Bumrah holds the key for India, Gillespie lavished praise on Mohammed Siraj, who impressed during his last trip to Australia.
"Mohammed Siraj is a nice bowler, he bowled some pretty good spells the last time he was here. But I still think the key bowler for India is Bumrah," he added.
On being asked to share his views on the venue for the series opener, Gillespie said: "It is a relatively fast bouncy track. Not quite the same as the old WACA. It will have some bounce and carry through it is a pretty good surface. It might challenge the batters early but it will play pretty well.
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