Bumrah names three Pakistani pacers as examples in explaining why fast bowlers excel as captains

Jasprit Bumrah, a leading fast bowler for India, recently shared his thoughts on why fast bowlers make excellent captains. He drew on the example of former Pakistan captain Imran Khan, who famously led his team to World Cup victory, to illustrate his point.

In an interview with The Indian Express, Bumrah explained that fast bowlers are very intelligent because their role requires them to outthink the batter.

"I feel bowlers are smart people because they have to get the batsmen out," Bumrah said.

"Bowlers have to do the hard job and are not hiding behind a bat, they’re not hiding behind a flat wicket. We’re right in the firing line. When we lose a game, it’s usually the bowlers who are blamed. So it’s a hard job.

"We’ve seen Pat Cummins doing really well. When I was a child, I’d seen Wasim Akram and Waqar Younis as captains. Kapil Dev has won us a World Cup. Imran Khan has won a World Cup for Pakistan. So, bowlers are the smart ones."

He also discussed the leadership qualities of different captains he's played under, such as Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma, and MS Dhoni.

"Rohit [Sharma] is one of the few captains who has empathy towards bowlers, despite being a batter,” the pacer added.

"He understands players’ emotions, and knows what a player is going through. Rohit is not rigid, he is open to feedback. MS [Dhoni] gave me a lot of security, quickly. He has a lot of faith in his instinct, and doesn’t believe in a lot of planning.

"Virat [Kohli] is energy-driven, passionate, wears his heart on his sleeve. He pushed us in terms of fitness, and changed the narrative that way. Now Virat is not the captain, but he is still a leader. Captaincy is a post, but a team is run by 11 people."