'He is as valuable as the Kohinoor diamond' - Dinesh Karthik praises Jasprit Bumrah after exploits in Headingley Test

Jasprit Bumrah once again showed why he is the best pace bowler in Test cricket right now, not just for India but around the world. His recent five-wicket haul in the opening Test against England at Headingley gave the visitors a slim six-run lead and triggered conversations around his standing as one of the greatest pacers of this generation. Former India cricketer Dinesh Karthik compared Bumrah to the value of a Kohinoor diamond - the rarest and most valued of all the gems.

Even after having three catches dropped off his bowling on Day 2, he returned the following day to send backChris Woakes and Josh Tongue. He wrapped up England’s innings just before Tea, ensuring India walked off with a six-run lead after the hosts posted 465 in reply to India’s 471. The cricketer-turned-commentator heaped huge praise on Bumrah and his bowling efforts.

"He is as valuable as the Kohinoor diamond. I hope people realise how important he is to the team across formats. He will make it work regardless of formats, bowling phase and any kind of ball. But more importantly, he has got the brain that knows what the batter is trying to do and he has got that wired very nicely. In the history of the game, for any bowler who has picked more than 200 wickets, he has the best average, and that tells you he is something very special," Karthik told via Sky Sports Cricket.

Bumrah equal's Kapil Dev's record

The right-arm speedster ended with figures of 5 for 82, his 14th five-wicket haul in Tests. His performance was the main highlight as he received very little support from the other Indian seamers and witnessed many dropped chances off his bowling. While Shardul Thakur, Mohammed Siraj, and Prasidh Krishna collectively conceded 288 runs for just three wickets, Bumrah remained the only player keeping the English batting unit on its back foot.

This spell also saw Bumrah equal Kapil Dev's record of 12 five-wicket hauls in away Tests, but the former has done it in just 34 matches, compared to Kapil’s 66. He now has 42 Test wickets in England, trailing only Ishant Sharma (51) and Kapil Dev (43) among Indian bowlers.