Indian pacer Jasprit Bumrah has been named ICC Men's Test Cricketer of the Year for 2024 after producing his best-ever annual haul in the red-ball format.
Rising in both home and away conditions, Bumrah was the best bowler in the world in 2024, significantly helping to put India in contention for the ICC World Test Championship standings.
After a protracted hiatus due to a back injury, marking his comeback to the longest format in late 2023, he accumulated an amazing wicket count and set many records.
As India won series triumphs over England and Bangladesh and rose to the occasion in away circumstances in South Africa and Australia, the right-arm quick proved crucial in home conditions.
Test record of Jasprit Bumrah in 2024: 71 wickets from 13 matches
Toping the charts with 71, well clear of second-ranked Gus Atkinson of England (52 in 11), Bumrah was far and away the highest wicket-taker in Test cricket in 2024.
In a fast-scoring era of Test cricket, he broke the pattern with an eye-watering 357 overs in the format yet maintained an incredible average of 2.96. His average during the year was a shocking 14.92, and he finished 2024 with just a 30.1 annual strike rate.
Following in the footsteps of Ravichandran Ashwin, Anil Kumble and Kapil Dev, Bumrah's 71-wicket haul makes him just the fourth India bowler to take more than 70 Test wickets in a calendar year.
None of the 17 bowlers who have taken 70+ wickets in a calendar year performed at an average as low as Bumrah's throughout test history.
Beginning India's unforgettable Test victory in Cape Town against South Africa, when the pace head was on target with eight wickets in the two innings as India pinned down the Proteas by eight wickets, Bumrah's amazing 2024 run started.
After that, Bumrah bagged 19 wickets during the five-Test marathon against England at home, as the hosts won 4-1.
But the seasoned bowler performed his masterpiece in the high-stakes Border-Gavaskar Series in Australia, where he came out with an amazing 32 wickets from five Tests and Player of the Series.
Bumrah became the 12th Indian bowler to break the 200 Test wicket mark during the Down Under series.
While accomplishing the feat, the 31-year-old broke a record by being the first bowler in Test history with a minimum of 200 dismissals to have an average less than 20 (19.4).
Memorable performance
Bumrah's best in Tests came in the series opener against Australia in Perth among an outstanding list of exhibitions.
Bumrah grabbed leadership of the team and led from the front in a legendary victory as the guests started without full-time skipper Rohit Sharma.
Bumrah wrecked havoc with the ball against the hosts, ending with a five-wicket haul to engineer a recovery due to scores of 5/30. Australia had folded India out for 150 on the first day.
Bumrah returned with three more wickets under his belt to complete up a historic 295-run victory, capturing 3/42 as Australia suffered their first loss at the stadium after India built up a massive total of 534 for the hosts.
