TV
Pakistan legend Wasim Akram has weighed in on the constant comparisons between himself and India’s pace spearhead Jasprit Bumrah. Akram, widely regarded as one of the greatest left-arm fast bowlers in history, built his reputation on devastating swing, pace, and skill across formats. Bumrah, meanwhile, has established himself as the premier modern-day quick, consistently delivering in high-pressure matches across all three formats.
With fans, pundits, and broadcasters frequently drawing parallels between the two, Akram chose to put things into perspective during a recent interaction.
“Jasprit Bumrah is a fantastic bowler. His unusual action, his pace, and the way the Indian board has managed him—it’s commendable. But comparing eras is unrealistic. He’s a right-armer, I was a left-armer. These debates on social media are like ‘Begano ki shaadi mein Abdullah deewana’—neither of us care, but people keep fighting among themselves. He’s a modern great. I was in my time, did my job, and I must say he’s very impressive,” Akram said.
Former India pacer Varun Aaron also joined the debate, underlining Bumrah’s extraordinary success in overseas conditions. He pointed out that Bumrah has already surpassed Akram’s wicket tally in SENA (South Africa, England, New Zealand, Australia) countries—a feat he believes cements the Indian’s place among the game’s elite.
“Calling him a genius would still be an understatement. To go past Wasim Akram’s record in SENA nations is incredible. Wasim was arguably the greatest fast bowler ever, and Bumrah is right up there—if not better,” Aaron remarked.
Bumrah will next be in action at the Asia Cup 2025 in the UAE, returning to T20Is for the first time since last year’s World Cup. With the Indian selectors carefully managing his workload to keep him fresh for marquee tournaments, all eyes will be on him to once again lead India’s pace attack.
