India missed the services of their premier pacer and captain Jasprit Bumrah as they took the field to defend 162 on Day 3 of the fifth Test at the Sydney Cricket Ground (SCG). India lost the Border-Gavaskar Trophy after a decade but Bumrah was adjudged 'Player of the series' for taking 32 wickets at an average of 12.83. In the post-match presentation, Bumrah did not reveal the nature of injury but said that he can't fight his body.
"Little frustrating but sometimes you have to respect your body, you can’t fight your body. Disappointing, probably missed out on the spiciest wicket of the series. Felt a bit of discomfort during my second spell in the first innings," Bumrah told the broadcaster.
After Day 2's play, Prasidh Krishna revealed that he suffered a back spasm and the medical staff is monitoring him. Bumrah tried rolling his arm before Day 3's play but realised that he would not be able to. The in-form pacer also revealed the conversation before they walked out to defend a small total.
"The chat was about belief, the other bowlers stepped up in the first innings. With a bowler short, the others had to take responsibility. The chat this morning was about the same thing, about having belief and showing character," he said.
Bumrah also summed up the series by picking out the positives.
"Lots of ifs and buts, the whole series was fought hard, we were in the game today as well, not like we were out of it, this is how Test cricket goes. Being in the game for longer, creating pressure, absorbing pressure and playing to the situation are all important. You have to adapt to the situations and these learnings will help us in the future," he further added.
Bumrah misses breaking BGT record
Bumrah missed out on breaking former Indian spinner Harbhajan Singh's record for most wickets in a Border-Gavaskar series. Harbhajan did it in 2000/01 series with 32 wickets from three games at an average of 17.03.