"I wouldn't play Bumrah in the first Test"- Former Aussie spinner speaks on pacer's workload

Australian spinner Brad Hogg is of the opinion that Jasprit Bumrah must play the second and third Test of the upcoming five-match Test series against England, scheduled to start on 20th June. Owing to his workload management, Jasprit Bumrah has been advised not to play several consecutive Test matches. Notably, Bumrah has had troubles with his back. After undergoing surgery on his back in 2023, he dealt with a back spasm in the fifth Test of the Border Gavaskar Trophy in Sydney in January this year.  

Due to the same concern, Shubman Gill was preferred over him as the new Test captain, with chief selector Ajit Agarkar stating that Bumrah would be playing only three out of five Tests on the tour of England. Now there has been constant chatter on which three Tests Bumrah should be playing in the five-match series. The Australian spinner, meanwhile, has suggested that Bumrah could be rested for the first Test as India must make sure that they play him in the second and third Test. 

“Where are you going to get the most benefit out of him? Because he can turn the game, he can turn the series on its head. So you want to make sure that you play him at Lord's, definitely, and probably Edgbaston.”

“And I don't know where you'd play him in the other three Test matches, but you want to make sure you play him in those crucial games. I probably wouldn't even play him in the first Test match, actually,” added the chinaman. 

"I'd just go, 'Right, England, we don't have Bumrah.' And you could just see England thinking, 'Oh, they don't have Bumrah – that's good, we don't have to face him.' But then they're going to start worrying about him in the second Test match. And if he turns the tide in the second match, then all of a sudden England are playing catch-up. So I'd add a bit of by-play there," Hogg stated. 

Apart from Bumrah, India have four other pace options in the squad i.e., Mohammed Siraj, Arshdeep Singh, Prasidh Krishna, and Akash Deep. Of these four, only Siraj has played Tests in England. He has picked 23 wickets in six Test matches played in England. Jasprit Bumrah, on the other hand, is the most experienced pacer in the squad. He has played nine Tests in England, picking 37 wickets at an average of 26.27.