How Virat Kohli "Instantly Decided" To Give Jasprit Bumrah His Test Debut

Since making his Test debut back in 2018 during India's tour of South Africa, Jasprit Bumrah's stocks in the longest format of the game have gone through the charts. Bumrah has established himself as the linchpin of India's pace attack not just in Test cricket but across formats. Former India bowling coach Bharat Arun pointed out one particular incident which played a part in Bumrah's ascension in Test cricket. Arun revealed that Virat Kohli was impressed with Bumrah in the nets, which prompted the management to hand the pacer his Test debut in Johannesburg.

"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, '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.

While recalling his chat with the-then head coach Ravi Shastri, Arun highlighted how Bumrah, who had become a mainstay in India's ODI and T20I team by then, always wanted to represent India in red-ball cricket.

"Bumrah, previously, when he was part of the ODI teams, constantly told me that his dream was to be a successful Test cricketer. 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," he added.

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Bumrah has played a crucial role in India's dominance in Test cricket, which started with the first series in Australia during the 2018-19 tour.

So far, the 28-year-old has played 27 Tests, taking 113 wickets at