ENG vs IND: Ollie Pope reveals bold plan to counter Jasprit Bumrah
England vice-captain Ollie Pope has revealed his brave plan to counter India's Jasprit Bumrah ahead of the 1st Test match at Headingley. Pope, who was confirmed as England's No. 3 batter in the first Test between the two sides, has explained how he wants to neutralise the threat that the fast bowler brings with him.Pope, who has been dismissed by Bumrah 5 times in the 9 Test matches that they have played against each other, said that the main target was to not let Bumrah bowl six balls straight at a single batter. Pope has a horrendous record against the India pacer. He has batted in 9 matches against Bumrah, scored 86 runs against the pacer, and has been dismissed 5 times. He got out to Bumrah twice in the same Test at The Oval back in 2022, when Bumrah captained the Indian team.advertisementSpeaking to The Times before the first Test match, Pope said that Bumrah was an extremely difficult fast bowler to face in Test cricket due to his position of releasing the ball and the kind of skills that he possesses.
'Maybe getting my trigger in a bit earlier just to give myself a bit more time. He's one of those bowlers that, with his action and where he releases it from, doesn't necessarily clock the high speeds that some of the guys clock, but it certainly feels like it's that bit quicker. With the skills he's got as well, it's being aware of that,' Pope said ahead of the opening Test match at Headingley.Pope explained that he would like to rotate the strike efficiently against Bumrah and not let him bowl six balls at the same batter.advertisement"Right, how can I rotate and get to the other end? And my partner's thinking the same, so he [Bumrah] doesn't get six balls at you in a row and use all his skills. He's a highly skilled bowler, one of the best in the world, if not the best,' Pope said.'There's no hiding behind that. But I'm sure everyone has different methods to try and nullify his main threats and figure out their scoring areas. It's really about keeping it as simple as possible,' he added.The last time England played India, they were hammered away from home. Rohit Sharma's team staged an incredible comeback after losing the first Test match in Hyderabad. Shubman Gill's Indian team would hope to emulate the same success in England in the 5 matches that they play against Ben Stokes' side.1st Test: England's Playing XI vs IndiaZak Crawley, Ben Duckett, Ollie Pope, Joe Root, Harry Brook, Ben Stokes (C), Jamie Smith (WK), Chris Woakes, Brydon Carse, Josh Tongue, Shoaib Bashir.Must Watch
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