Meet Raj Mishra- Jasprit Bumrah’s doppelganger in Hyderabad

Doppelganger in cricket isn’t a rare phenomenon these days. Even Virat Kohli, the Indian skipper across formats, has one. And now, Jasprit Bumrah, the talented Indian fast bowler, has one as well. Raj Mishra, a State Walker in Hyderabad, has often been mistaken for Bumrah.

He has also been representing Telangana in the National athletics championship. There have been plenty of instances when the onlookers have stared at him, mistakenly identifying him as Bumrah. But later, they have had to apologise after realising the truth.

“Sometimes, people stare at me or at times call me Bumrah and then later realising the mistake, they say sorry,” Mishra was quoted as saying in Telangana Today. “In the 2019 nationals I came fifth and I was looking forward for this year’s nationals. But this coronavirus has upset my plans,’’ Mishra stated.

At the present point in time, people from the sports world have had their troubles. It hasn’t been easy for Mishra either. He has been practising at EME Centre of Secunderabad Cantonment. He has been working with Youraj Singh, a former Hyderabad wicketkeeper. “It is a tough time in this Covid-19 crisis. But I never miss my training,’’ Mishra added.

Jasprit Bumrah struggling for India

After being India’s standout bowler in the 2019 World Cup, Bumrah shone in the Test series against the West Indies as well. He picked up a hat-trick and became the third Indian bowler after Harbhajan Singh and Irfan Pathan to accomplish the feat. But then, the Ahmedabad-born developed a lower back injury that kept him out of the game for quite some time.

He made his comeback in the T20I series against Sri Lanka and though he picked up wickets, he didn’t quite look venomous enough. He couldn’t pick up a single wicket in the ODI series against New Zealand. Therefore, he lost his number one ranking to Black Caps’ Trent Boult.

He was set to play for the Mumbai Indians (MI) in the 2020 edition of the Indian Premier League (IPL). However, the tournament has been postponed for an indefinite period owing to the coronavirus pandemic. Bumrah is currently spending time with his family, doing household chores.