Jasprit Bumrah was on Friday released from the national squad in the middle of the final Test with several questions doing the rounds on his fitness.
The world’s No.1 fast bowler has already played his quota of three Test matches as part of his workload management. The 31-year-old bowled 119.4 overs in three games and took 14 wickets.
“Jasprit Bumrah has been released from India’s squad for the fifth Test of the
series against England,” BCCI announced in a release on Friday.
However, his release has once again brought his fitness under scrutiny since his presence could have been vital in guiding the young and inexperienced pace attack in a Test which India have to win to level the series 2-2.
Bumrah had looked worn out and frustrated in the fourth Test in Manchester where he conceded more than 100 runs in a single innings for the first time in his career.
With the series on the line, captain Shubman Gill and head coach Gautam
Gambhir waited till the last minute to take a call on Bumrah. The team management had hoped that he would play since the green top would have suited him.
The think-tank has remained tight-lipped on Bumrah’s fitness even though there is a lot of speculation over his back injury. He didn’t bowl at nets in the lead-up to the final Test.
Assistant coach Ryan ten Doeschate acknowledged after the opening day that it was a tough call leaving a player like Bumrah on the bench.
“It’s quite a complex issue around Bumrah. We obviously want to wheel him in, but we also want to respect where his body’s at, and on the basis of that, we just felt that it wasn’t worth including him in the squad,” he said on Thursday.
“He has bowled a large number of overs, I know it doesn’t always seem like that because he’s only played three Tests and he only bowled in one innings in Manchester.
“But if you look at the loads, he’s bowled a lot of overs, and like he did say coming into the tour, he was going to be available for three games, and we just felt it was right to honour that call,” Ten Doeschate added.
Is he picking and choosing games considering his injury prone past and back surgeries?
“I don’t think picking and choosing is a fair comment to Bumrah. He did say he was going to play three games, he left it up to us which three he would play. We’ve tried to manage the situation, it’s not ideal, I guess giving those guys attention, the guys
who aren’t playing particularly when you’re carrying 18, is important.
“... Make them know that you’re making all the decisions in good faith, in the best interest of the team, and just on that, all the guys who haven’t played, they’ve been fantastic, they’ve trained the house down, they’re disappointed when they get left out.
“They don’t let it show when they’re around the group and that’s very important to creating a good culture for the guys who are playing to perform.”
He felt that it made sense to play Bumrah in Manchester than keeping him for the final Test.
“Every time I’ve answered this question I’ve spoken about putting the pieces of the puzzles together... Guys were baffled when we didn’t play him in the third Test,” he said.
“Our thinking was that The Oval, yes it’s got bounce but it’s normally a fairly good wicket for batting, and we thought we’d roll the dice and if we’d won the toss we would have bowled.
“In hindsight you would have loved to have him here, but you would also have said if we come here 3-1 down that we didn’t use him there, so it’s trying to not guess but trying to look into the future and then see how we can manage him... maybe England have got it spot on leaving the best bowling wicket for the last Test after he’s played three.”