‘Bumrah a modern-day great’: Akram dismisses comparisons

Jasprit Bumrah's rise to the top of world cricket has inevitably sparked comparisons with past greats, but Wasim Akram, often held up as a benchmark, believes such debates are misplaced. The Pakistan legend insists it is "impossible" to compare his era with that of India's pace spearhead.

The Virat Kohli vs Sachin Tendulkar comparison remains the most popular, but Jasprit Bumrah vs Wasim Akram has also emerged in recent years, largely due to their mastery of yorkers, reverse swing, and clever variations.

However, Akram dismissed the idea of pitting him against India's current pace spearhead.

"Jasprit Bumrah is a wonderful bowler. He has an odd action, has pace, and credit to the Indian cricket board for the way they manage him," Akram said on GEO TV's Haarna Mana Hai show.

"Comparisons between the 90s and now are impossible. He is right-handed and I am a left-armer. Social media keeps fighting about it, but neither I care nor he cares. He is a modern-day great. I was in my era. I did my job. He is a very impressive bowler, I must say."

Former India pacer Varun Aaron also hailed Bumrah's rise, pointing to his record in overseas conditions.

"Calling him a genius would be an understatement. He has now gone past Wasim Akram in terms of wickets taken in SENA countries. That says it all for me because Wasim was arguably the best fast bowler to walk the face of the earth—and Bumrah is pretty much the same, if not better," Aaron said.

Former Australia fast bowler Shaun Tait, speaking to The Indian Express, also underlined Bumrah's unique skills.

"Bumrah has the ability to swing, seam, and some variations. The way his action is, his wrist can move the ball a little bit more than a lot of bowlers. He can shape the ball both ways and, on the right wicket, he can get some seam movement. He's a very skilful bowler with a really good bouncer," Tait observed.