Exclusive: Surinder Khanna claims Rohit Sharma should play under Jasprit Bumrah

Former Indian cricketer Surinder Khanna strongly backed the idea of continuing with Jasprit Bumrah as the captain of the Indian team in the upcoming matches of the Border-Gavaskar Trophy. Bumrah led India to a historic win in the first match of series at Perth.

With regular captain Rohit Sharma missing out on the first game because of the birth of his child, Bumrah was handed over the reins. The fast-bowler led from the front, taking eight wickets in the match. He was brilliant with his decision-making as well. But now Rohit Sharma is back and is expected to lead the team in the rest of the four matches. 

Why Bumrah and Not Rohit?

However, impressed with Bumrah’s captaincy, Surinder Khanna said that he would rather have Rohit play under Bumrah.

“Bumrah was phenomenal as the captain. If I was in charge I would keep Bumrah the captain for the rest of the series and let Rohit play under him. The way Bumrah led in the match and bowled– giving India breakthroughs whenever they needed– was amazing,” Khanna told Sportsboom in an exclusive interview.

“It was a drop-in wicket and Bumrah showed guts by winning the toss and opting to bat first. That is the moment I said: this guy is a true leader, he will do something special here,” he added.

Surinder, a veteran wicket-keeper batter from Delhi, also lauded India’s fast bowlers for their effort on the Perth wicket, especially debutant Harshit Rana. 

“The way Bumrah, Siraj and young rookie Harshit Rana bowled in the match was a treat to watch. They were so menacing and made the dangerous Australian fast-bowling attack look ordinary in comparison. Rana was just playing his first match but showed great promise. He comes from the same club in Delhi as Ishant Sharma and I believe if he remains fit, he could also end up playing 100 Tests for India like Ishant,” Khanna said.

Apart from Bumrah's brilliant bowling, opening batter Yashasvi Jaiswal played a clinical role to help India beat Australia at Perth. The southpaw scored a magnificent knock of 161 runs, which Khanna was all praise for.

“Yashavi Jaiswal is the new superstar born in India. What a player, what a batsman. I feel short of words. The way he showed guts against a lethal Aussie attack, especially that flick against Starc, I just enjoyed it to the fullest,” he said.

Australia's Comeback

India has a 1-0 lead in the five-match series and would be riding high on confidence going into the second pink ball Test at Adelaide. But Surinder Khanna thinks India should be wary of Australia’s comeback and not get carried away.

“There is a phrase “When you fire up the Kangaroos tale, they are hard to catch”, so Australia will surely come back strong. But I have a feeling that this time Indian boys mean business. Our bowlers are breathing fire already, just the batsmen should give them enough runs and India is good to go ahead in the series,” Khanna concluded.