Bumrah's Workload Under Scrutiny: Shastri Urges India to Reconsider Rest Strategy Amidst Test Series

Jasprit Bumrah with his captain Shubman Gill (Photo by Clive Mason/Getty Images)

Following India's recent defeat at Headingley, former India head coach Ravi Shastri has urged the team management, including head coach Gautam Gambhir, to reconsider their strategy regarding Jasprit Bumrah's participation in the upcoming Tests against England in the Anderson-Tendulkar Trophy series. Bumrah's impressive performance at Headingley, where he claimed five wickets, contrasts with the team's current plan to limit him to only three of the five Tests to manage his workload.

In the Headingley Test, Bumrah achieved match figures of 5-140 across 43.4 overs, securing all his wickets in the first innings.

Shastri, speaking on Sky Sports, emphasized the potential ramifications of resting Bumrah. "If he was looking at a rest, you may have to think twice. If you don't have him and then go 2-0 down it could be an uphill task," Shastri stated.

The performance of the other Indian seamers – Shardul Thakur, Mohammed Siraj, and Prasidh Krishna – further complicates the matter. Together, they recorded figures of 9-482 in 92 overs, which might sway the decision to field Bumrah in the second Test at Edgbaston, commencing on July 2.

Shastri also reflected on India's missed opportunity at Headingley: "This will be a tough pill for India to swallow. You don't get in positions like this very often and blow it from there. They had a chance to take England out of the contest and dictate terms."

He further added, "They have to learn and they need more bottle from the tail, for them to be stubborn and put a price tag on their wicket. There is a big role for the coaching staff to take the positives. As a captain, Gill has done more than can be asked of him. He got a hundred in his first Test in charge and the dropped catches (and collapses) are not in his control,"

Former England captain Nasser Hussain shared his observations on Shubman Gill's captaincy and the Indian team's overall showing.

"I saw someone finding his way. He didn't quite have that on-field aura of Rohit and (Virat Kohli). I thought he followed the ball a lot and was reactive rather than proactive. When Rohit and Kohli captained, you looked down and you immediately knew who was in charge but when I looked down in this game I saw two or three captains, captaincy by committee," Hussain noted.

He concluded, "But India lost from two things Gill couldn't control - drops and collapses. The collapses concern me. In India they have had spin-bowling all-rounders that are magnificent - Ravi Ashwin, Ravindra Jadeja, Axar Patel - but in England they are still looking for a seam-bowling all-rounder who can bat. If they keep going 6-31 and 7-41 this could be a quick series,"