"You Got Bumrah But...": McGrath's Million-Dollar Question To Rohit-Dravid

There have been talks over India's playing combination ahead of their T20 World Cup 2024 opener against Ireland on Wednesday. While the debate surrounding India's opener combination has garnered most of the traction, there's another area which the team management must address, which is pace spearhead Jasprit Bumrah's partner. Former Australia pacer Glenn McGrath feels his compatriot Mitchell Starc and Bumrah will be the players to watch out for in the tournament.

In Australia's case, they have two experienced campaigners in Pat Cummins and Josh Hazlewood to partner Starc. Not to forget, Mitchell Marsh, who is leading Australia, is another handy pace bowling option.

Besides Bumrah, India, on the other hand, have Mohammed Siraj and Arshdeep Singh as the other two frontline pacers in their squad of 15, while Hardik Pandya and Shivam Dube are the two pace-bowling all-rounders.

McGrath suggested that while Bumrah will be instrumental to India's chances, someone must contribute with the ball to take the load off Bumrah.

"We saw Starc at the end of the IPL. He came into his own, which was good to see. Bumrah just seems to be the one bowler that batters find it hard, even in T20s, to get on top of. So, I think if Australia is to win this World Cup, Starc has to bowl well. A lot of it relies on him. And Bumrah for India, but then it is who's going to take wickets around Bumrah and who's going to bowl well around him," McGrath said at the MRF Pace Foundation ground.

McGrath, however, backed Arshdeep to be a better partner for Bumrah than Siraj.

"You got Jasprit Bumrah. He showed just how good he is throughout the IPL (he picked 20 wickets from 13 matches for Mumbai Indians). But it is like having a left-right opening combination for batters. It also depends on how they are bowling. In T20s, you do not have much time to be ready. If you take an over or two to warm up, the game is already over. If you have got a good opening-bowling combination, that is where you are going to win matches," he added.

Bumrah was the standout performer for Mumbai Indians in their IPL 2024 campaign, with the franchise finishing bottom of the pile.