Trent Boult has backed Jasprit Bumrah to bounce back strongly against Kolkata Knight Riders in Abu Dhabi on Wednesday.

The India pace spearhead had a rare off-day going for 43 runs off his four overs in the tournament opener.

“He (Bumrah) is a world class bowler, he is trying very hard over the last couple of days to find rhythm. I am 100 per cent sure he will be on the mark in the coming games,” Boult said.

“He is a big player for us and a very important bowler and I am sure he will bounce back very nicely.”

Boult is hoping to forge a successful partnership with Bumrah in MI’s bowling attack. “Yes, the opportunity to bowl with Bumrah and the other guys in the bowling attack is very exciting and a good opportunity to learn. And yes Bumrah is a guy, who is very experienced and he has got some amazing skills and I’m really looking forward to hopefully having some success with him,” he said.

The 31-year-old left-arm pacer, who returned with figures of 1/23 against CSK, was satisfied with his own effort, even though MI failed to defend 163-run target.

“I think from my point of view personally — coming off from a big winter in New Zealand with lockdowns and isolations, I haven’t played cricket in probably six months -— I was pretty happy with the way I came out. Conditions are a lot different to what I face back home, with the heat and humidity here.”

He, however, said there were a couple of areas they needed to work on in the coming games.

“But we were a couple of (few) runs short in terms of our total to defend. We need to tighten up a couple of small areas with accuracy and execution,” he said.

He admitted that bowling in death overs was the biggest challenge in T20 cricket. “It is the biggest challenge to be honest. It is very difficult to come in and bowl the last couple of overs against batsmen who are set. (Faf) Du Plessis was set the other night on 50 or 60 runs and when guys are hitting from that platform, it is very hard to defend,” he said.