'Who are the danger bowlers?' - Ex-South Africa captain concerned over India's dependability on Jasprit Bumrah
India have successfully defended all their targets in the T20 World Cup. The Men in Blue's only loss came against South Africa, where they batted second.
Jasprit Bumrah has been spearheading India's bowling attack in the ongoing T20 World Cup 2026 and has been carrying the burden on his shoulders of delivering the goods with the ball. While the batting unit has faced massive backlash, it is the bowlers who haven't been exposed to challenging conditions thus far, which is a sign of concern, according to the former South Africa cricketer Faf du Plessis.
Du Plessis, who has played a lot of T20 cricket in India, believes that the Indian team is overdependent on Bumrah and wants other bowlers to step up as well. In fact, the cricketer-turned-commentator thinks that no other pacer has been as effective as Bumrah for the Suryakumar Yadav-led side in the ongoing tournament.
"You look at it [India's bowling options] and ask, 'Who are the danger bowlers?' Most of the time, it's Jasprit Bumrah. On the day, you make that call – if you can get on top of someone else early, then the sixth bowling option is going to have to come in. If that happens, and Shivam Dube is bowling wide yorkers or defensive lines, you can line him up," du Plessis said via ESPNcricinfo.
"The team they would have planned before the World Cup and where they find themselves now feels very different from a role perspective. Initially, the top three was going to be left-handed, and now you've got Sanju Samson coming from five. Possibly to the top. You've got Tilak possibly going to five. It's a lot of movement in terms of role play, and if you look at the teams that are doing well, it's a very set batting line-up," du Plessis added.
Legendary bowler concerned about India's ability to defend
Notably, India had successfully defended their 256-4 against Zimbabwe in the Super Eights encounter on Thursday at the MA Chidambaram Stadium, Chennai. The Indian bowlers restricted the Chevrons to just 184, guided by Arshdeep Singh's three-wicket haul. They now have to defeat the West Indies in a virtual quarter-final at the Eden Gardens on March 1 to qualify for the semi-finals.
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