Bullied Kid, Estranged Student, Bradman of Bowling — The Jasprit Bumrah Story

It has been 10 years since Kishore Trivedi last spoke with Jasprit Bumrah. But he's proud of his favourite student.

The Making of Jasprit Bumrah | ICC T20 World Cup 2026

(Photo: The Quint & ICC)

Chapter 1: Jasprit Bumrah — The Estranged Student

“Aap surprised ho gaye, hai na?”

Kishore Trivedi asks the question with a wry smile — the kind that does not quite conceal the age behind it. Approaching eighty, he still arrives at the Royal Cricket Academy in Prahlad Nagar every day to train aspiring cricketers.

Trivedi has several identities. He is a former Saurashtra cricketer, whose debut wicket was of Sunil Gavaskar. He is also the father of former Rajasthan Royals cricketer, Siddharth Trivedi.

But the identity for which his phone has been inundated with calls from curious journalists has very little to do with his or his son’s career, but someone he coached — Jasprit Bumrah.

Kishore Trivedi — Jasprit Bumrah's first coach.

(Photo: The Quint)

In a semi-final contest between India and England that yielded 499 runs, Bumrah conceded only 33 runs runs in his four-over spell. Had it not been for the two excellent overs at the death, where he nailed every yorker and conceded only 14 runs, India would not have been playing in the final of the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2026 today.

Trivedi will be watching every ball of his ward today. As he did on Thursday, during the semi-final. As he has been doing for the last 13 years — ever since Bumrah made his debut for Mumbai Indians in the Indian Premier League (IPL).

The pride is unmistakable in how Trivedi speaks about his student. The way the phrase ‘mera beta’ surfaces naturally, repeatedly. The way he straightens slightly when describing what the boy has become — the ‘Sir Don Bradman of bowling,’ as some commentators have taken to calling him.

That is, until The Quint asked him about his last conversation with the player he calls his ‘son.’

Has there been any conversation ahead of the final? Some players do reach out to their childhood coach prior to a crucial fixture.

No. No contact.

Before the tournament, at least?

No.

This year?

No.

The smile has stayed on his lips, but its character has changed. We are 40 minutes into an interview. What was once a smile of pride, is now that of lament. Of yearning. He has the expression of someone who holds a person dear and has learned, slowly, across a decade, that the feeling does not travel in both directions.

Trivedi tells us:

It has been 13 years since I have last seen Jasprit. I have not met him since he joined Mumbai Indians. It has been 10 years since I have last heard his voice. He had called me when he was first selected for the Indian team, in 2016. He said on phone ‘Sir, I have been selected for India.’ That was all. Not a word ever since.

Kishore Trivedi, Jasprit Bumrah's Coach

Has it caused disappointment?

Trivedi is defensive. His response: Mujhe koi gila shikwa nahin.

But the mask falls off soon.

I am his first coach. It depends on an individual if he wants to remember his first coach or not. Sachin Tendulkar is called the God of cricket, but he always had time for Ramakant Achrekar. I have heard Virat Kohli is also quite close to his childhood coach. Jasprit has not spoken with me for 10 years. It is fine. I can tell myself that he is very busy. But his mother has not called once either. I will be lying to you if I said I did not expect any call from her, but it never came.

Kishore Trivedi, Jasprit Bumrah's Coach

Jasprit Bumrah (first from left on the second row) and Kishore Trivedi (first from right on the second row) pictured together, from 2010.

(Photo: The Quint)

The aged figure is experienced enough to spot the surprise in the journalist’s reaction. Hence, the question: You are surprised, aren’t you?

Soon, he follows it up with an affirmation that ensures that while he may not be in contact with his favourite student anymore, Bumrah will always have his support.

Jasprit not speaking with me for the last 10 years does not mean that I am not incredibly proud of what my boy is doing for the country. I can proudly say that I watch all of Jasprit’s matches, and I will continue doing so.

Kishore Trivedi, Jasprit Bumrah's Coach

Chapter 2: Jasprit Bumrah — The Bullied Kid

Indira, who works as a cook for some residents at Goyal Intercity in Thaltej, tells The Quint that Jasprit has always had a knack for cricket as a kid, and has broken car glasses aplenty.

Indira, who has cooked Suji Dhoklas aplenty for foodie Jasprit Bumrah.

(Photo: The Quint)

It was not until 2009 that it became anything more formal. That year, Trivedi approached Nirman High School in Vastrapur with a proposition: he would set up a cricket academy on the school grounds. Students of the school would pay Rs 500 a month; outsiders, Rs 700. The school’s children would stay active, the odd talent would find a path. It was a straightforward arrangement.

Bumrah was that odd talent. Oddest of them all.Kishore Trivedi, Jasprit Bumrah's Coach

Jasprit was about 15 when I first saw him. He used to play cricket in his society, but had never had any formal coaching. He wanted to join my academy, but his peers at the time warned me not to coach him.

Kishore Trivedi, Jasprit Bumrah's Coach

The Nirman High School cricket ground, where Jasprit Bumrah spent his formative years.

(Photo: The Quint)

Justification for the warning?

Kids used to come to me and say — Don’t teach Jasprit, he is a chucker. They used to taunt him a lot. Jasprit was very shy, so he would not retaliate. In fact, he was so shy that he did not appeal for LBW either. But it got me very intrigued — why would a bunch of kids call someone a chucker? I wanted to see what was going on.

Kishore Trivedi, Jasprit Bumrah's Coach

Trivedi decided to play the role of an observer before taking Bumrah under his wing, for he wanted to verify whether the claims of chucking had any substance to them.

For the first three days, I observed Jasprit very closely. He had a unique action — something I had not seen before. But I observed that his action is completely within the guidelines. There was no question of chucking at all. It so happened that because he used to bowl so fast, no batter from the school was able to deal with his deliveries. Hence, they called him chucker.

Kishore Trivedi, Jasprit Bumrah's Coach

Goyal Intercity — where Jasprit Bumrah grew up.

(Photo: The Quint)

Chapter 3: Jasprit Bumrah — A Pact With Mother

While Bumrah always had potential, he did not have the necessary dedication during the initial days.

Jasprit was not always committed to the sport. He liked cricket and bowling, but as a hobby. He would turn up for practice for two days, and then skip it on the third day. This continued for a while, and I realised that he was aware that with his mother being the vice-principal, he had a free reign in school. He could do as he pleased. But I knew that the kid had potential, and it will be wasted if he does not become serious. I told him to commit to the game and attend training every day without fail, or stop playing entirely. There cannot be any middle-ground.

Kishore Trivedi, Jasprit Bumrah's Coach

Upon realising that cricket can, indeed, be more than a pastime activity for him, and that he is talented enough to have a high ceiling, Bumrah committed his undivided focus to the sport. The problem now was his mother — Daljeet Bumrah. An academician by nature and profession, she had watched her son’s grades slip and arrived at the academy with understandable concern. Bumrah’s father had died when the boy was young. She was navigating this alone.

When I told Jasprit that he has the potential to make it big, he became serious. But there was another problem — his mother. She came up to me one day and said “Sir, my kid has started playing cricket all day, and does not want to study at all.” Jasprit’s father had unfortunately passed away when he was very young, and his mother did not know what to do with him. I came up with a plan.

Kishore Trivedi, Jasprit Bumrah's Coach

Alongside his mother and his sister, Jasprit Bumrah used to live in this very apartment.

(Photo: The Quint)

What plan?

I told his mother that the kid has genuine potential. I will be honest — at no point did I think Jasprit will become the bowler he is today. But I was certain that he will at least play Ranji Trophy for Gujarat, which is a big achievement in itself. So I asked her to give me three years, where there can be no questions asked on Jasprit’s deteriorating grades. All that we ensured that he gets to the passing grade — but I cannot mould a cricketer if his aim is to be a class topper. I told her that if in three years Jasprit does not represent Gujarat, I will take all the blame upon myself and accept that I have ruined a kid’s future. But for the next three years, his undivided focus will be on cricket, and not studies. And he made his Gujarat debut within three years.

Kishore Trivedi, Jasprit Bumrah's Coach

Chapter 4: Jasprit Bumrah — The Unique Action

Cricket coaches in India are often victims of the Indian mentality that prioritises superficial perfection over unique imperfection. Since Bumrah already had pace and swing, some had suggested Trivedi to change his action to an orthodox one, for they assumed it will make him more lethal. But the coach knew what he was doing.

The first thing I told Jasprit was that he must never change his natural action, because if he did, he would lose what makes him unique. The action was jarring to the eye, but it also confused the batters. This detail might not be known to many, but late Shane Warne and former Pakistani cricketer, Sohail Tanvir also had a role to play in Bumrah’s career.

Kishore Trivedi, Jasprit Bumrah's Coach

How?

Around the same time, my son Siddharth Trivedi was playing for Rajasthan Royals, and they also had this Pakistani bowler called Sohail Tanvir, who won the Purple Cap in the first season. I was speaking with captain Shane Warne one day, and he told me — the bowlers who are unique are the ones who can create magic. Because Tanvir had a very unique action, and Warne was very fond of him. When I saw Jasprit, I remembered Warne’s words.

Kishore Trivedi, Jasprit Bumrah's Coach

Jasprit Bumrah's classroom.

(Photo: The Quint)

Chapter 5: Jasprit Bumrah — The Yorker Specialist

In his initial days, bouncer was the readily available retaliation to every troll for Bumrah.

Jasprit has always had two things — pace and swing. It came naturally to him. He would exploit his intimidate the batters. Because he was an introvert, he could not verbally retort the chucker taunts, but give a ball to his hand, and he would bowl one bouncer after another and the same batters would keep ducking out of fear.

Kishore Trivedi, Jasprit Bumrah's Coach

The yorker — the delivery for which he is now, perhaps, most celebrated — was not natural. It was manufactured, late into the nights, at the base of a set of stumps, with a target and a condition attached.

Pace alone was never going to get him to Ranji Trophy. In school level, his bouncers were very useful. But when he started playing district-level cricket, he saw that batters had no fear of his bouncers and they would hit him easily. So I decided — he must add to his arsenal. He must have a vicious yorker. After every training session, I would keep an object at the base of the stumps. I gave him a target — he has to hit the object ten times, and only then will he be allowed to go home. Initially, he was all over the place, but his accuracy improved with constant practice.

Kishore Trivedi, Jasprit Bumrah's Coach

Besides his action, what is also unique about Bumrah is his stamina.

What sets Jasprit apart from his peers was his stamina. Like his action, his stamina was also a natural gift. He would bowl for an hour at a stretch without showing any signs of fatigue. This is a very rare quality.

Kishore Trivedi, Jasprit Bumrah's Coach

Chapter 6: Jasprit Bumrah — The Growth

Bumrah’s initial assignment was the U-16 inter-school matches. Having excelled there, he was promoted to the U-19 team. It was when he picked a fifer against a decent opposition, despite being too young, that Trivedi realised he is ready to play district-level tournaments. He made the necessary arrangements.

Jasprit started off with U-16 inter-school tournaments, and soon I made him play the U-19 level. In one of the matches against a strong opposition, he took five wickets, and I realised that the boy is ready for district-level cricket now. At the time, inter-district trials were being conducted by the Gujarat Cricket Association (GCA). The secretary, Anil Patel happened to be a friend of mine, because we have played a lot of Bank tournaments together. He used to play for Bank of India, and I used to play for Central Bank. I told him that I am sending a kid called Jasprit, who I believe has got huge potential. He did well in that trial, and that’s how it all started.

Kishore Trivedi, Jasprit Bumrah's Coach

It did not take Bumrah long to establish himself in the Gujarat team first, and then, catch the attention of John Wright, the erstwhile Mumbai Indians coach, who happened to be attending a Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy, hoping he will find a talent to groom.

The rest, as they say, is history.

My intention has always been to provide Jasprit with the best opportunity to succeed. I made the call to Anil Patel because I knew he became too good to be restricted to school tournaments. In fact, I had also told Jasprit that it will be my last year with him, because I mostly coach juniors. I had spoken with a decorated senior-level coach in Gujarat, Tarak Trivedi, for coaching Jasprit from the next year. But fortunately, John Wright saw him in a Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy game and realised that he was special. From there onwards, credit for his growth has to be given to Mumbai Indians.

Kishore Trivedi, Jasprit Bumrah's Coach

The field where it all started.

(Photo: The Quint)

Jassi Jaisa Koi Nahin

In a few hours, Bumrah will walk out to bowl in a World Cup final. Trivedi will be watching.

We asked him: if the phone rings tonight — if, after everything, Bumrah calls his first coach after the match — would there be any grievance in what Trivedi says to him?

No, I would not. I would rather tell him that I am very proud of him, and that regardless of whether he ever speaks with me again, he will always remain my child.

Kishore Trivedi, Jasprit Bumrah's Coach

His child is now the child of a billion. There is, indeed, no one like Bumrah. Jassi jaisa koi nahin.