Stuart Broad Defends Jasprit Bumrah’s Case as Greatest Fast Bowler Ever After World Cup Heroics

Despite winning POTM against England, Sanju Samson claimed Jasprit Bumrah actually deserved the award for his performance in the semifinal.

Stuart Broad Defends Jasprit Bumrah’s Case as Greatest Fast Bowler Ever After World Cup Heroics

Stuart Broad hailed Jasprit Bumrah as the 'greatest' fast bowler of all time. (via News Bytes)

In Short
  • Stuart Broad praised Jasprit Bumrah as the 'greatest' fast bowler ever after his standout performance in the T20 World Cup semi-final.
  • Bumrah's disciplined bowling helped India secure a narrow victory over England, conceding only 33 runs and taking one wicket.
  • New Zealand's Glenn Phillips expressed hope for Bumrah to have an 'off day' in the upcoming T20 World Cup final against India.

Jasprit Bumrah did not win the POTM award for his performance against England in the 2026 T20 World Cup semi-final. However, his efforts were widely praised.

Englishman Stuart Broad, in a conversation with former teammate Steven Finn, even hailed Bumrah as the ‘greatest’ fast bowler ever. It was Jasprit Bumrah’s decisive spell at the death that saved the Indian team from a humiliating semi-final exit.

Jacob Bethell’s ton brought the Three Lions close to the massive 254-run target set by India, at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai.

With England needing 69 runs from the last five overs, Bumrah returned to bowl the 16th over, delivering a series of disciplined yorkers to concede a mere eight runs.

Bumrah gave away six runs in the 18th over, ending any hopes of an England comeback, while finishing with figures of 1/33 at an economy rate of 8.2. The 32-year-old also scalped the all-important wicket of English captain Harry Brook in the fifth over. In a match where all other bowlers conceded over nine runs, Jasprit Bumrah stood out, reminiscing a performance that had won him the POTS award in 2024.

His impact was discussed by former England pacers Stuart Broad and Steven Finn, both of whom hailed Bumrah as the ‘greatest’ fast bowler of all time. Finn suggested that the Indian pacer sits well above his contemporaries like Pat Cummins and Mitchell Starc, even referring to him as out-of-the-worldly.

However, a BBC article Finn wrote on Bumrah faced criticism from some fans who argued that the Indian pacer was not comparable to the legendary West Indies fast bowler, Malcolm Marshall.

Stuart Broad, who finished with over 800 international wickets, agreed to Finn’s assessment, noting that he has not seen a fast bowler of Bumrah’s caliber. The 39-year-old exclaimed that it is difficult for anyone to compare him to the likes of past legends like Marshall, Richard Hadley, Curtly Ambrose, and Glenn McGrath.

Broad’s reasoning was that these legends did not play T20I cricket and might not have been able to perform at the level Bumrah did on the batting-friendly surface in the semi-final. On the ‘For the love of Cricket’ podcast, he said:

It’s difficult because we didn’t see Malcolm Marshall in a T20 World Cup semifinal where the ball was flying to all parts and I think I would lean on your article and it’s [Bumrah’s bowling] certainly the best I’ve ever seen live, that is for sure.

So far, Jasprit Bumrah remains India’s second-highest wicket-taker at the ongoing 2026 T20 World Cup, with 10 scalps to his name. Despite playing largely on flat surfaces in India, he has been able to maintain an economy of 6.62.

Glenn Phillips prays for Jasprit Bumrah’s ‘Off Day’ ahead of T20 World Cup final showdown against India

New Zealand all-rounder Glenn Phillips, while recognizing Jasprit Bumrah’s bowling, made a final rallying statement. Phillips expressed hope that the star Indian pacer would have a ‘bad day’ during the 2026 T20 World Cup final at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad.

Glenn Phillips on Jasprit Bumrah
Glenn Phillips urged New Zealand to score runs against Jasprit Bumrah. (via India Today)

Bumrah lived up to expectations, with his two overs helping India secure a narrow seven-run victory over England in the T20 WC semi-final. The Indian pacer stood out despite the match being a run-fest, with 449 runs scored between the two teams. India will now face New Zealand in the final, with the Kiwis having made it through with a dominant nine-wicket victory over South Africa in the other semi-final.

Glenn Phillips urged his teammates not to simply look towards surviving Bumrah’s spell and asked them to seize any scoring opportunity. Adding on, the Kiwis hoped for the Gujarat-born pacer to have a ‘bad’ day in Ahmedabad, reasoning that he is ‘human’ and is prone to making mistakes. He, however, did acknowledge the fact that Bumrah can bowl outstandingly well in the death, and has a lot of variations as well. 

[Jasprit] Bumrah is a fantastic bowler. He’s got so many variations… And he’s human as well. He is allowed to have a bad day, as are the rest of us. So hopefully we have a good day against him.

New Zealand’s hopes for the final extend beyond Jasprit Bumrah, as they will also be wishing for an ‘off day’ for other key bowlers. Varun Chakravarthy, who is the world’s no.1-ranked T20I bowler, will be looking to bounce back after giving away 64 runs in the semi-final.

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