India’s ace bowler and Yorker specialist Jaspreet Bumrah, who made the batsmen crawl with his toe breaking deliveries have bagged the 2019 youth icon award at Forbes Under 30 event.
During chitchat with Gaurav Kalra at the event, who is also the Group Editor (Sports) Network 18, the pacer defined his cricket journey and explained why he doesn’t keep long term goals and focus on one match at a time.
He also praised Lasith Malinga for teaching him how to bowl lethal Yorkers. Here is what he said during the event “Just playing one match for India was my dream…one step at a time, one match at a time. No long-term goals!”
“I don’t keep long term goals. I play one bowl at a time, one match at a time”
“When we bat in the nets, batsmen make fun of us. We take our revenge when they bowl! There’s a lot of banter during practice”
When asked who taught him bowl lethal Yorkers, he said “Malinga taught me how to use my yorkers. I think I can be better at it. Malinga is the best yorker in the world. He taught me and helped me get better.
When asked is he a famous cricketer at home. He replied I’m not a famous cricketer at home, I’m just a son and I have to do as my mother says”.
On his journey in Indian cricket, he said: “My family, coming from an education background, did not have faith that I could make it in sports, but cricket was my peaceful place.”
When asked about a viral video of a 70-year-old lady practicing his bowling action, he responded “After a tough tournament we’d faced, it brought a smile on my face. When I was a kid, I used to copy my heroes’ bowling action, and now when kids copy mine. It feels great”
He also explained how his transformation from an aggressor to a calm person. He stated “I used to be more aggressive when I’d started out but I have now understood that there’s no point in that. The calmer you are, the better it is, says”
During the conversation when anchor Gaurav Kalra called him and national asset, he instantly responded “I don’t think I’m a national asset. In our team everyone is equal. The journey has just started and we have a long way to go”.
When asked about not playing in the West Indies, he replied We’ve been playing throughout the year, the home season is coming and we’ve to prepare. That’s why I’ve been asked to rest”.
The other sportspeople to be awarded Youth icon award Forbes 30 Under 30 were Ajay Thakur, Duttee Chand, and Neeraj Chopra and Devendra Jhajaharia.
