In order to manage his workload, India’s pacer Jasprit Bumrah has recently had to reduce his playing time. Following a back injury sustained during the Border-Gavaskar Tests (BGT), Bumrah has been used with extreme caution. He only played two of the five Test matches in England, but he has subsequently participated in all of the matches, including four home Test matches against South Africa and the West Indies, save for the ODIs against Australia.
Bumrah has once again not been selected for the ODIs against South Africa, but he will return for the T20I series with an eye towards the 2026 T20 World Cup. In light of this, former India all-rounder Ravichandran Ashwin has advised Bumrah to limit himself to playing white-ball cricket.
In a YouTube discussion with AB de Villiers, Ashwin stated, “If I were anywhere near him, I’d tell him to stick to white-ball cricket.”
“Avoid appearing on the Test side until India is in dire need of him. But I am familiar with him. He wants to continue playing despite the difficulty because he enjoys the format.
Additionally, Ashwin wants Bumrah to participate in Test matches only when it counts and not every game in order to advance his career.
“I’d prefer that Bumrah concentrate on T20 cricket for the sake of both India and himself. not squander time on pointless ODI. Play only the important tests, particularly the ones played away. In any case, we ought to be training a squad of quick bowlers for domestic circumstances,” he stated.
Bumrah should only play outside of Asia, according to De Villiers, who concurred with the seasoned Indian cricket player. De Villiers declared, “I would remove him from all of the domestic and Asian Test matches.”
Only in Australia, South Africa, New Zealand, and England should you use him. Maintain his fitness for those and allow him to concentrate on the white-ball formats when World Cups are at stake.
Harshit Rana, Prasidh Krishna, Ashdeep Singh, and all-rounder Nitish Kumar Reddy are India’s pace alternatives in Bumrah’s absence for the ODIs against South Africa, which begin on Sunday, November 30, in Ranchi.
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