India, Jan. 28 -- Morne Morkel didn't try to dress it up on the eve of the fourth T20I against New Zealand. When the conversation turned to Jasprit Bumrah, he chose admiration first and then the human cost of carrying a side's hopes.

"Jasprit is the best bowler in the world. But at the end of the day, everybody needs somebody to talk to. There's always a lot of expectation on him to go and bowl that magical spell and win the game for us. Sometimes, that burden can take its toll," he explained.

It was a reminder that even in a format built on speed and shortcuts, a fast bowler still lives in long stretches of pressure: the over that has to stop a chase, the spell that must drag a wicket, the margin that disappears with a single miss. Bum...