Indian pace sensation Jasprit Bumrah has become the first Indian pacer to be named as the ICC Men's Test Cricketer of the Year for 2024. Bumrah outclassed competition from Joe Root, Travis Head and Kamindu Mendis to become the sixth Indian named the best cricketer of the year in the Test format.
Bumrah had a memorable 2024. He took 71 wickets from just 13 matches at a whopping average of 14.92. His brilliance was on full display during the away Border-Gavaskar series and the England Test series at home. He was the lone warrior from the Indian team during the five-match Test series in Australia, during which he scalped 32 wickets. His 32 scalps are the joint-most by any bowler in a single Border-Gavaskar series.
Bumrah now joins an elite list of Indians to be named the best cricketer of the year in the red-ball format since the award was first honoured in 2004 to Rahul Dravid.
List of Indians to become ICC Men's Test Cricketer of the Year:
1 - Rahul Dravid in 2004
2 - Gautam Gambhir in 2009
3 - Virender Sehwag in 2010
4 - Ravichandran Ashwin in 2016
5 - Virat Kohli in 2018
6 - Jasprit Bumrah in 2024
Bumrah was on song in 2024. He was by far the highest wicket-taker last year in Tests with 71 scalps to his name. The second on the list was Gus Atkinson with 52 wickets in 11 matches. Bumrah is only the fourth Indian to take 70 or more wickets in a single calendar year in Test cricket.
The 31-year-old pacer made his return to the Test format in late 2023 after an injury absence. Bumrah picked eight wickets across two innings in the team's win against South Africa in Cape Town. He then took 19 wickets in the five-match series against England before performing well in the Bangladesh Tests too. Bumrah kept his best for the Australia series and was the biggest reason why India didn't lose to Australia by a bigger margin than 3-1.
He picked three fifers in the series and two four-wicket hauls. His 32 wickets came at an average of 13.06.