Despite a five-wicket loss to England in the first Test at Headingley, India will not alter its pre-decided plan to rest pace spearhead Jasprit Bumrah for two of the five matches in the ongoing series, head coach Gautam Gambhir confirmed on Wednesday.
Bumrah, who returned to Test cricket after a four-month layoff due to a back injury, delivered a stellar performance in the first innings with figures of 5 for 83. However, he went wicketless in the second innings as England chased down a daunting 371-run target, handing India a 0–1 deficit in the series.
Addressing media concerns over Bumrah’s availability, Gambhir said, “For us, managing Bumrah’s workload is more important. There’s a lot of cricket ahead, and we know what he brings to the table. Before the tour began, it was already decided that he would play only three Tests. We haven’t yet finalized which two he’ll miss, but we’ll assess his body and decide accordingly”.
The 31-year-old pacer bowled 43.4 overs in the match, raising questions about his fitness and India’s bowling depth in his absence. However, Gambhir urged patience with the young and relatively inexperienced pace attack, which includes Prasidh Krishna, Harshit Rana, and Arshdeep Singh.
“This bowling group is still developing. Outside of Bumrah and [Mohammed] Siraj, we don’t have much experience, but these boys have quality. We picked them on trust, not hope,” Gambhir said.
India’s captain Shubman Gill also dismissed injury concerns around Bumrah and echoed the coach’s sentiment, stating that the team would assess the situation on a match-by-match basis.
The second Test is scheduled to begin on July 2 at Edgbaston in Birmingham. With Bumrah likely to be rested, the onus will be on India’s young pacers to step up against England’s aggressive batting lineup.
