Indian fast bowler Jasprit Bumrah reached the milestone of 100 T20I wickets during the first match of the series in Cuttack on Tuesday. Bumrah needed just one wicket to enter the game and had several close attempts from his first over before finally reaching the landmark.
The Indian quick completed his feat in the 11th over by dismissing Dewald Brevis. With this wicket, Bumrah became only the second Indian to join the 100-wicket club after Arshdeep Singh, who achieved the mark earlier this year.
Known for his playful personality, Arshdeep welcomed Bumrah with a light-hearted note that made him sound like a senior member of the group. He walked up to Bumrah, smiled and told him, “Welcome to the 100-wicket club, mate.”
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The left-armer revealed the replacement after the match, leaving commentator Ravi Shastri laughing. Shastri applauded Arshdeep for getting one over Bumrah at this point.
“It’s great that Bumrah has also joined the 100-wicket club today, so I congratulated him and welcomed him to the club with a smile. Bowling alongside him is always fun. When as a group every player contributes and takes wickets, it’s much easier for the captain. He gets flexibility in matchups, overs and plans,” Arshdeep said post-match.
Arshdeep bowled superbly and picked up the first two wickets before Bumrah’s shot in the tenth over ended the South African innings.
Reflecting on his bowling, Arshdeep said that he has to keep adjusting his lengths according to what the surface has to offer.
“The thought process was simple. Just run in, use whatever help the wicket has and try to give the team early breakthroughs. When you hit the seam hard, sometimes you bounced extra, sometimes you moved a little bit, help appeared on the surface. So the plan was just to stay disciplined and get as much as possible off the pitch,” Arshdeep said.
“Length adjustments happen quite quickly there. I bowled full and got a wicket, then I bowled full again and it went for four, so the reminder came immediately. Then I pulled the length back, took another wicket, bowled full again and got hit again. So the learning curve was ball by ball,” he added.
“You don’t have much time to think. The pitch tells you what to do,” concluded the fast bowler.
The Cuttack pitch behaved in an unusual manner and offered plenty of help for the seamers who hit the surface hard. Fast bowlers on both sides made life difficult for the batsmen throughout the match. After South Africa’s early burst reduced India to 175 in their 20 overs, the Indian fast bowlers reveled in the surface created for them.
Every Indian bowler was between the wickets and they dismissed South Africa for just 74, their lowest total in the history of T20I cricket.
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Issued by:
Akshay Ramesh
Published on:
December 9, 2025
