Both captains heaped praise on fast-bowler Jasprit Bumrah after his match haul of nine wickets in India's 106-run win over England in the second Test in Visakhapatnam.
Chasing a record 399 for victory, England were bowled out for 292 in the second session on Day 4 with Bumrah and spinner Ravichandran Ashwin, who ended the match on 499 Test wickets, taking three each in the final innings.
Yashasvi Jaiswa's double century in the first innings and Shubman Gill's ton in the second were both vital contributions with the bat that helped India level the five-match series at 1-1.
But it was Bumrah who earned the player of the match award for his 9-91 match figures with both India captain Rohit Sharma and his England counterpart Ben Stokes quick to praise the 30-year-old's efforts.
“He's a champion player for us, he's been a while doing a job for the team,” said Rohit. “When you win a game like that, you have to look at the overall performance. We were good with the bat and we knew winning a Test match in these conditions, we needed our bowlers to step up and he did that.”
Stokes hailed the impact of both Bumrah and England's veteran bowler James Anderson, who finished with a match haul of five wickets that took his Test tally to 695.
“Anderson was amazing,” said Stokes, whose team fell to only their third loss in 11 fourth innings chases since his arrival as captain. “You look at him and the way that Jasprit Bumrah played this week, you are watching two incredible bowlers.
“Jasprit is obviously on the opposing side but sometimes you just have to hold your hands up and say, what a player. But Jimmy is exactly that as well.”
Bumrah's 6-45 in the first innings was his best bowling performance on home soil and – after taking 3-46 in the second – he now as 36 wickets in six Tests in India, at an average of 13.06 and strike rate of 29.5.
He also became the fastest Indian bowler to 150 Test wickets during the match but Bumrah insists he has long since stopped looking at his record.
“I don't look at numbers,” said Bumrah. “I used to do that as a youngster and it made me excited but if you think about it too much, it adds baggage to the pressure that is already on as an India player. But I am just so happy that we won, and it feels even better to contribute to that success.
“The yorker is the first delivery that I learnt. As a kid I saw so many legends bowling it and I learnt it playing tape ball cricket. I used to feel that was the only way to take wickets and I love using it to my advantage, even in Test cricket.
“I don't see myself as the leader of the attack but we do have some new younger bowlers so I do enjoy having that responsibility of helping them and guiding them where I can.
“I am a fast bowling fan, before being a cricketer. It is all I have ever enjoyed watching and doing. So I always enjoy watching fast bowlers, even on the other team.
“I look at the situation, I look at the wicket and then I look to solve the problem from there. I am not a one-trick pony, so I will look at different things and different options.”
The third Test starts on February 15 in Rajkot and the teams will take a 10-day break beforehand, with England expected to fly back to the UAE for the week, having trained in Abu Dhabi ahead of the series.
