NEW DELHI: Jasprit Bumrah, known for his calm and composed demeanour on the field, tickled his funny bone and poked fun at Australian batter Marnus Labuschagne during the first day of the pink ball Test at Adelaide Oval on Friday.
During the 13th over of Australia’s innings, Labuschagne defended the ball straight to Bumrah and cheekily said, “Wait on!” Bumrah, with a smile, calmly collected the ball, and on the very next delivery, outclassed him completely.
In a playful moment, Bumrah made a slow, exaggerated run toward Labuschagne to show his humorous side. Labuschagne, recognising Bumrah’s brilliance, smiled and acknowledged the superb delivery.
Bumrah also achieved a remarkable feat by becoming the first bowler to take 50 Test wickets in 2024. Celebrating his 31st birthday, Bumrah struck to dismiss Usman Khawaja for his 50th wicket, who was caught at first slip by captain Rohit Sharma.
Earlier, Australia’s Mitchell Starc claimed a career-best 6-48 to bundle out India for 180 inside two sessions of the day-night second Test.
India lost in-form opener Yashasvi Jaiswal to the first ball of the test and slumped to 141-8 before Nitish Kumar Reddy’s belligerent 42 took them past the 175-mark.
India came into the clash riding high after a 295-run victory at the first Test in Perth, but Australia have a formidable record in Adelaide, winning all seven pink-ball Tests they have played at the venue.
