‘Jasprit Bumrah is a once-in-a-generation player,’ says Virat Kohli during T20 World Cup title celebration

Years ago, when he played junior-level cricket at the iconic stadium, Bumrah never imagined someday he would be celebrated with such pomp and show.

India’s Jasprit Bumrah waves the World Cup trophy before a victory lap after winning the ICC men’s T20 World Cup, at Wankhede stadium in Mumbai. | Photo Credit: REUTERS

Jasprit Bumrah has been one of the architects of India’s T20 World Cup 2024 win. At a time when India found itself on a slippery slope in the final with South Africa needing run-a-ball to claim the title, Bumrah’s over changed things India’s way.

And as the Indian team celebrated the victory at the Wankhede Stadium on Thursday, Virat Kohli made a magnanimous gesture by asking the crowd to applaud Bumrah. “Like everyone in the stadium (here), we also felt at one point if it is going to slip away again, but what happened in those (last) five overs was truly, truly special,” Kohli said.

Looking at Bumrah, who was sitting on the front row along with other teammates, Kohli went on referring him as as a once-in-a-generation player. “You know what I’d like everyone to do is applaud a guy who brought us back into games again and again and again in this tournament. What he did in those last five overs, bowling two out of the last five overs, was phenomenal. A huge round of applause for Jasprit Bumrah, please…” Kohli said.

Moments later, as Bumrah walked up to the dais to address the crowd, he looked emotional. Years ago, when he played junior-level cricket at the iconic stadium, Bumrah never imagined someday he would be celebrated with such pomp and show. “It feels amazing. This ground is really special in my life. As an under-19 kid, I came here to play cricket and what I saw today, I will never forget that,” an emotional Bumrah said.

Reflecting on this group of players, the speedster added, “The confidence that we have to take the game by the neck and pull us out of trouble is special. Our aim is to take Indian cricket forward. This World Cup gives us the motivation to go ahead and do it again…”

Throughout the campaign, Bumrah was joined by his wife and infant son, and he admitted that he got emotional seeing his son after the final. “Seeing my son, I started crying. I never usually cry after games, but my son was there to see me winning the World Cup and there are no words for that,” he said amid huge cheers from the crowd.