Jasprit Bumrah vs Javagal Srinath: Comparing their stats after 45 Tests

Jasprit Bumrah is currently the No. 1 bowler in the ICC Test Rankings. The Indian fast bowler has made a name for himself with his extraordinary bowling performances in red-ball cricket.

In the recently-concluded Border-Gavaskar Trophy series 2024/25, Jasprit Bumrah won the Player of the Series award despite being on the losing side. Bumrah stole the show by scalping 32 wickets in nine innings at an average of 13.06.

Prior to Bumrah, Javagal Srinath had grabbed the headlines as India's top right-arm pacer back in the 1990s. The 'Mysore Express' was Team India's premier fast bowlers back then, and picked many an important wickets, having a similar impact to Bumrah. In a combined 296 international games, he picked up 551 wickets, inclusive of 13 five-wicket hauls and 15 four-wicket hauls.

Now that Bumrah has reached the 45-Test landmark, it would be truly intriguing to compare the statistics of the two great pacers and find out who was better. Without further ado, let's do just that.

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#1 Jasprit Bumrah vs Javagal Srinath - Who has more wickets after 45 Test matches?

Bumrah has played 45 Test matches so far in his career, scalping 205 wickets, and having bowled 8,630 balls for the Indian team. On the other hand, Javagal Srinath had taken 167 wickets after 45 matches in the Test format.

Overall, Srinath played 67 Tests during his career from 1991 to 2002. His 45th Test appearance came against South Africa at the Wankhede Stadium in 2000. Srinath took three wickets in that game in a losing cause.

Score: Bumrah 1 - 0 Srinath.

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#2 Jasprit Bumrah vs Javagal Srinath - Who has the better bowling average after 45 Test matches?

Bowling average is an important statistic in Test cricket because it shows how many runs a bowler concedes on an average before taking a wicket. Talking about Bumrah's numbers first, the current Indian pacer has maintained a fantastic bowling average of 19.4 in Test cricket, meaning he takes a wicket before conceding 20 runs on an average.

Meanwhile, Javagal Srinath's Test bowling average was considerably higher after 45 Test matches. The former Indian right-arm pacer's bowling average was 30.35 after his 45th Test appearance. It shows that on an average Srinath would concede 10 runs more than Bumrah to take a wicket in Tests for India.

Score: Bumrah 2 - 0 Srinath.

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#3 Jasprit Bumrah vs Javagal Srinath - Who has the better strike rate after 45 Test matches?

Another important stat in Test cricket is the bowling strike rate. While the batting strike rate should be high in cricket, the bowling strike rate should be low because it shows after how many balls a bowler take a wicket on an average.

Talking about Javagal Srinath's bowling strike rate after 45 Tests, the former Indian pacer had a strike rate of 62.78. It means Srinath would take more than 10 overs on an average to get a breakthrough for the team.

Jasprit Bumrah once again outshines Srinath in this department. After 45 Tests in his career, Bumrah has an impressive bowling strike rate of 42.1, showing that he takes a wicket in approximately seven overs.

If we compare the stats of the two Indian fast bowlers, Bumrah edges out Srinath in three aspects. However, comparing eras and the transition in world cricket across the years in various aspects, it would be safe to say that both stalwarts have served and are still serving Indian cricket very well.

Final score: Bumrah 3 - 0 Srinath.