Dubai: In a year dominated by Jasprit Bumrah’s sheer brilliance across formats, the Indian pace maestro was crowned the ICC Men’s Cricketer of the Year for 2024, earning the prestigious Sir Garfield Sobers Award overtaking fellow nominees Travis Head, Joe Root and Harry Brook.
Bumrah joined an elite list of Indian cricketers who have claimed this honour. His predecessors include Rahul Dravid (2004), Sachin Tendulkar (2010), Ravichandran Ashwin (2016), and Virat Kohli (2017, 2018). In a year when batters often stole the spotlight, Bumrah rose above the challenge, reminding the cricketing world of the value of elite bowling.
Bumrah’s performances in red-ball cricket were nothing short of extraordinary. He became the fastest Indian pacer to achieve 200 Test wickets, finishing the year with a staggering 71 dismissals in just 13 matches at an average of under 20. His 2024 haul is the highest by any bowler for the year and second only to Kapil Dev’s record for the most wickets in a calendar year by an Indian pacer.
Bumrah’s dominance was evident in his ICC Test Bowling Rankings, where he crossed the 900-point threshold, ending with a record-breaking 907 points—the highest ever for an Indian bowler.
Bumrah’s zenith came during the Border-Gavaskar Trophy, where he picked up an astounding 32 wickets across five Tests. His performances, including five-wicket hauls in Perth, Brisbane, and Melbourne, dismantled the formidable Australian batting lineup, which earned him the Player of the Series award. His relentless accuracy and ability to extract pace and movement on both flat and challenging tracks left the Australian batters in disarray. In the ongoing 2023-2025 WTC cycle, Bumrah has already scalped 77 wickets—the most by any pacer in a single cycle. This includes pivotal contributions in India’s matches against Bangladesh, New Zealand, and England besides Australia.
While his Test achievements were monumental, Bumrah’s white-ball performances were equally mesmerizing. Leading India’s charge in the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup, Bumrah was instrumental in securing the country’s long-awaited World title after 17 years.
He emerged as the tournament’s leading wicket-taker, with 15 scalps at a jaw-dropping average of 8.26 and an economy of just 4.17. His spellbinding performance against Pakistan (3-14) and a game-defining 2-18 in the final against South Africa cemented his reputation as the ultimate match-winner.
Bumrah also became the fastest Indian pacer to reach 200 Test wickets milestone.
(IANS)
