India’s new head coach Gautam Gambhir has confirmed that star pacer Jasprit Bumrah will continue to follow his pre-decided workload plan during the ongoing five-Test series against England, with no changes expected despite the Headingley loss.
Despite India’s narrow five-wicket defeat in the first Test at Headingley, Gambhir emphasized that Bumrah will still feature in only three of the five Tests a decision made before the series began, keeping in mind the long season ahead.
“For us, managing Bumrah’s workload is more important because there’s a lot of cricket coming up,” Gambhir said.
Bumrah's Fitness Comes First
Bumrah, who has battled back injuries in recent years, was always expected to be managed carefully. The current plan to play him in only three Tests is a proactive approach to ensure he remains fit and effective throughout the season, especially with the ICC World Test Championship and other major tournaments on the horizon.
Gambhir also added that while the plan is to rest Bumrah for two Tests, the exact matches haven't been finalized yet. It will depend on how his body responds as the series progresses.
India’s Bowling Under Scrutiny
Bumrah went wicketless in the second innings of the Leeds Test, as England successfully chased a challenging target of 371. While Prasidh Krishna and Shardul Thakur picked up two wickets each, the rest of the bowling unit including senior players like Mohammed Siraj and Ravindra Jadeja failed to leave a significant mark on a pitch that heavily favoured the batters.
Gautam Gambhir stood by India's young pace attack, emphasizing that their limited Test experience will take time to mature into consistent performances.
“Outside Bumrah and Siraj, our fast bowlers haven’t played much Test cricket. Earlier, we had four seamers with 40+ Test experience. Experience matters in countries like England, Australia, and South Africa.”
He urged fans and experts not to judge the new generation of bowlers too quickly and stressed the importance of giving them time to develop into a consistent force.
England’s Flying Start and Stokes' Praise
England, meanwhile, celebrated a memorable victory as Ben Duckett’s brilliant century and his 188-run opening partnership with Zak Crawley set the stage for their successful run chase. Captain Ben Stokes lauded the duo’s efforts, highlighting how vital it was to get off to a solid start in the pressure of a fourth innings chase.
“Opening in England isn’t easy, but that partnership was unbelievable,” Stokes said.
What’s Next?
The focus now shifts to the second Test in Birmingham, starting July 2. With the series standing at 1-0 in England’s favour, India will look to bounce back strongly possibly without Bumrah which will test the depth and temperament of the rest of the bowling unit.