Jasprit Bumrah's umpteenth Messiah avatar has India dreaming of an MCG miracle

The late Tony Greig famously said after Sachin Tendulkar unleashed another one of his inimitable straight drives in the 2001 Border-Gavaskar Trophy - 'There is Tendulkar, then there is Daylight and then there is the Rest'. Fast forward to the 2024 Border-Gavaskar Trophy and the rephrased version goes - 'There is Bumrah, then there is Daylight and then there is the Rest'.

Popularly referred to as India's 'Cheat Code', Jasprit Bumrah added another chapter to his magical cricketing story, bordering on mythical levels. Coming into Day 4 of the Boxing Day Test at the Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG) firmly on the back foot, India and their fans still believed a miraculous victory was within reach, thanks to one man and one man only - Jasprit 'Messiah' Bumrah.

And for an umpteenth time in 2024 from heaven, the ace pacer did not disappoint with a spell for the ages to tilt the power of balance in India's favor at the halfway point of the penultimate day. After teaching the 19-year-old Sam Konstas, who added a rare blip in his path to glorified air in the first innings, a harsh lesson by castling him, Bumrah removed India's chief nemesis Travis Head for literally nothing for a second time in the Test match.

Mitchell Marsh and Alex Carey made brief appearances in Bumrah's movie of Aussie destruction before being sent packing by the champion speedster. A masterful spell of 3/2 in two overs had Australia reeling at 91/6 with an overall lead of only 196.

Even the Aussie faithful could not resist the temptation to applaud Bumrah and his artistry, skill, and killer will. Yes, the man known as 'Boom Boom' had gone 'Boom Boom Boom' in a matter of minutes to have the whole of India dreaming about an MCG miracle.

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Bumrah's Aussie conquest places him in rarefied air

Australia v India - Men's 1st Test Match: Day 4 - Source: Getty

If October was a festive season in India, Jasprit Bumrah has ensured the celebrations continue until the end of the year. With pace-bowling of the highest order, the generational pacer has produced some of the greatest spells ever seen on Aussie soil.

In a series featuring several great bowlers, Bumrah has stood head and shoulder above the rest with 29 wickets at an extraordinary average of 13.24 in four outings. Beyond the numbers, Australian fans and batters breathing a sigh of relief each time Bumrah completes a spell has been a sight to behold for long-time Indian cricket lovers, who have often lived and died with talented yet largely inconsistent pacers over several decades.

Furthermore, Bumrah became the first bowler in Test history to complete 200 wickets and boast an average of under 20 (19.51). It was also fitting that the ace pacer dismissed Travis Head of all people to achieve the milestone during his sensational spell on Day 4 in Melbourne.

Ticking every box in the record books at the rate of knots, Bumrah also achieved the joint-highest rating points for a bowler in the latest ICC Test bowling rankings after the third Australian Test.

If these numbers aren't staggering enough in isolation, that they have come in arguably the most batter-friendly era of the sport makes it further other-worldly. As Australia's No. 10 and 11 Nathan Lyon and Scott Boland solidly weathered the Indian bowlers on a wearing Day 4 pitch, a thought worth pondering arose.

Bumrah boasts the best-ever bowling average for bowlers with 200 Test wickets in a generation where there are no genuine tail-enders. It is contrary to previous ones when it was a matter of minutes that a team would be bowled out once six or seven wickets down.

Just envisioning this champion Indian pacer operating to the tail with his toe-crushing yorkers back in the day makes one wonder how much better these already godly numbers might be. Irrespective, Bumrah's conquest of Australia in their own den has left little doubt of him being the Most Valuable Player (MVP) in world cricket today.

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Bumrah's 2024 - Best single-season in cricket history?

South Africa v India: Final - ICC Men's T20 Cricket World Cup West Indies & USA 2024 - Source: Getty

Just on quantitative numbers, an argument on Jasprit Bumrah's 2024 season being the best in the sport's long and rich history would be far-fetched. Being India's Kohinoor diamond, the ace pacer is often rested for series against lower-ranked teams (another factor that makes one wonder how much better that already record-shattering numbers may be).

Yet, in the games he has played, Bumrah's impact this year has been nothing short of phenomenal. For starters, he is the leading wicket-taker in international cricket in 2024 with 85 scalps at an extraordinary average of 13.91 in 21 matches.

The year started with a sensational six-wicket haul to help India finish the South African away Test series on level terms with a win in Cape Town. Bumrah then enjoyed some home cooking to stun England and help India pull off a 4-1 win despite bowling predominantly on spin-friendly tracks.

Then came a stretch of T20 bowling that has undoubtedly never been seen from the IPL to the T20 World Cup. Bumrah picked up 35 wickets at an average of 13.14 and an economy of 5.64 in 21 matches across the two tournaments.

His mind-boggling T20 World Cup display saw him finish with 15 scalps at an average of 8.26 and an economy of 4.17. It includes dismissals of any and every key opposition batter, ranging from Babar Azam and Mohammad Rizwan to Travis Head and Jos Buttler at all stages of a game.

By helping India almost single-handedly win the T20 World Cup, Bumrah was also named the Player of the Tournament.

Following a brief break, Bumrah returned to action and tormented Bangladesh at home with 11 wickets in two Tests. Three wickets and two home Tests against New Zealand later, the champion pacer has put on his umpteenth magic show in the ongoing Australian series.

The numbers, versatility, tangibles, intangibles, and eye test all make unbiased viewers repeatedly ask themselves this - When have we last witnessed bowling with such impact across formats like this? The answer might be never.

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Will Bumrah's love affair with Melbourne have a similar climax?

Australia v India: 2nd Test - Day 4 - Source: Getty

Heading into the final day of the thrill-a-minute ride that is the ongoing Boxing Day Test in Melbourne, all Indian fans have only one question - will history repeat itself? History could mean several things here - A 2021 Brisbane-esque run-chase, a 2015 Melbourne-esque draw, or Bumrah's heroics resulting in a memorable Indian win like 2018 and 2020 Melbourne.

Australia's final pair are still battling away with an overall lead of 333 runs, meaning India will have their task cut out on the final day. The visitors endured several haunting experiences at the MCG in Tests since the famous 1981 win.

India lost five out of their next seven Tests at the venue with the other being draws.... until Jasprit Bumrah arrived. In his first Australian Test tour in 2018-19, the cheat code was unlocked and a nine-wicket Test outing at the MCG followed, helping India win by 137 runs.

Bumrah was obviously not done yet as he dished out six more wickets in India's eight-wicket win in Melbourne in 2020, which kickstarted their remarkable turnaround in the series.

He now sits on eight wickets in the ongoing clash with four wickets in each innings, leading India's comeback trail on Day 4. Will it be a hat-trick of wins that punctuate another Bumrah magic at the MCG? The millions of Indian cricket fans would certainly hope so.

Should the Bumrah-Melbourne love affair not have the usual happy ending, Indian fans can still overcome the pain with this thought - The privilege and joy of witnessing one of the all-time greats weave his magic to cap off a 2024 season for the ages.