Jasprit Bumrah lists reasons for India's defeat to NZ: 'Dew, high-risk shots, bubble fatigue'

Dubai, November 1: After suffering a defeat against New Zealand in the ICC T20 World Cup 2021, India pacer Jasprit Bumrah said his side realises that losing the toss in the ongoing tournament is a big disadvantage as the dew has been playing a big role.

Trent Boult and Ish Sodhi starred with the ball before Daryl Mitchell smashed 49 off 35 to help New Zealand defeat India by eight wickets on Sunday (October 31).

"As a sportsman, you face a lot of days in cricket. Some days will be good and some days would be bad. What I try to do is not get very high when good days happen and not get very low when low days happen.

“All of these things are always are part and parcel of a cricketer's life. Try to stay in the moment, analyse what went wrong, what went well and try to move forward.

“That's the only way that you can move forward in this game," said Bumrah during a virtual post-match press conference.

"We don't have discussions. I'm not here trying to teach what the batsmen should do. But what we were focusing, as I told before as well, that we realised that once you lose the toss, the wicket changes in the second innings," he added.

India was restricted to 110/7 in the allotted twenty overs against New Zealand.

No batter was able to stay at the crease for a long haul, and what followed was a lacklustre performance.

"So obviously I felt that we wanted to give the cushion, and it was a discussion that we want to give the cushion to the bowlers.

“And that happened. So in that I think we went attacking a little early. And the longer boundaries actually came into play.

“They used their slower balls where they used the wicket quite well to their advantage and they made it difficult for our batters to play the big shots," said Bumrah.

"The singles were not there on the offer, so they were playing attacking shots. High risk shots were always there. I think that was the summary of what happened today. And that's for everyone to see," he added.

Bumrah said India wanted to have extra runs which made the side go on the field with an attacking mindset.

"It's not very easy. But that is the challenge that you'll have to take extra responsibility. That was the communication.

“Obviously, it's difficult. That's why everybody was playing an evening game is choosing to bowl first, because there's a massive difference.

“So we understand that. We knew that. And our batters did understand that they have to give the cushion if they're batting first," said Bumrah.

"So they tried their best. Obviously, it didn't come off today. But the communication was clear and everybody knew what the situation of the game is and where they're heading," he added.

Bubble fatigue

Bumrah also opened about the bio-bubble fatigue that cricketers are facing during the COVID-19 pandemic.

With months of playing franchise and international cricket in the bubble, players have often complained about fatigue and Bumrah reiterated the same.

“Absolutely, you need a break sometimes. You miss your family. You have been on the road for six months. So all of that sometimes play on the back of your mind but when you are on the field, you don’t think about all of those things.

“You don’t control a lot of things. All the scheduling goes on or what, what tournament is played when. So obviously staying in a bubble and staying away from your family for such a long period of time does play a role on players' minds as well," Bumrah said.

"But BCCI has also tried their best to make us feel comfortable. This is the time in which we are living right now. It's a difficult time.

“There is a pandemic going on. We try to adapt but sometimes bubble fatigue, mental fatigue also creeps in and you are doing the same thing again and again. It is what it is and you can't control a lot of it here," he added.

Ashwin’s absence

Bumrah also said star spinner R Ashwin adds a lot of value to the team but whether his presence had made a difference against New Zealand is difficult to judge following the team's defeat.

Bumrah said in hindsight numerous questions can be answered but during the game, there was dew in the second innings which made things a little tough for India.

"In hindsight, we can say a lot of things. In hindsight we could have wished to score a lot more runs or got, lost more wickets.

“Obviously, he (R Ashwin) is an experienced bowler, he adds a lot of value in our bowling attack whenever he comes.

"But in hindsight, it is very difficult as I told you there is dew in second innings and when the balls don't grip the options becomes very rare and very little.

“In hindsight you may say he might have made a difference but it is too difficult to judge right now," Bumrah said.