The dust has settled on Visakhapatnam, and the echoes of Jasprit Bumrah's thunderous spell still reverberate. While statistics paint a picture of a six-wicket haul for 45 runs, the reality transcends mere numbers. On a placid Indian pitch, where spin maestro Ravichandran Ashwin found himself muted, Bumrah orchestrated a symphony of swing and seam, silencing the English batting order and scripting a healthy first innings lead for India. We will dig deeper, analyzing why this wasn't just another bowling performance, but a masterclass that cemented Bumrah's status as a true game-changer. India, powered by Yashasvi Jaiswal's double hundred, had posted a dominant 396. England, despite early fireworks from Zak Crawley, needed a monumental fightback to avoid a significant deficit. The pitch, known for its batting-friendliness, was expected to favor spin, leaving some experts, like the ever-vocal Kevin Pietersen, cautiously optimistic about England's chances. Af
It was a day at the IPL 2021 player auction. Chris Morris, Krishnappa Gowtham, and Riley Meredith br o ke the bank and created history in their own right in Chennai on Thursday (February 18). Morris became the foremost expensive player within the history of the IPL after the Rajasthan Royals shelled out a whopping INR 16.25 crore for the Proteas all-rounder. Gowtham became the foremost expensive uncapped player in IPL history — sold to the Chennai Super Kings for 9.25 crore. Meredith earned a similar tag in the overseas category as the Punjab Kings snapped him up for 8 crores. In the platinum league, Chris Morris was followed by Kyle Jamieson (RCB), Glenn Maxwell (RCB), and Jhye Richardson (PBKS), who were bought for 15 crores, 14.25 crore, and 14 crores respectively. A total of 298 players were a neighborhood of the proceedings, and therefore the Kings XI Punjab bought a maximum of 9 players by virtue of starting the auction with the biggest purse worth 53.2 crores. RR an