Much has been murmured about Jasprit Bumrah’s decision not to play in the fifth Test and his performance in the series in England. And he has been facing criticism for his decisions but Sachin Tendulkar has rubbished those critics.
“I know people are discussing a number of things – jo Tests khela nahi, voh hum jeete (India won the Tests he didn’t play) and all that. To me that’s just a coincidence, to be honest,” Tendulkar said in a video at Reddit.
Sources in the Indian cricket board had affirmed to The Indian Express that it is not a case of Bumrah ‘picking and choosing’ matches he wants to play, but rather a common decision arrived at to allow the star pacer to extend his playing career as long as possible. After bowling his heart out during the last tour of Australia, Bumrah suffered a back injury before returning mid-way through the IPL. “This is not a case of workload management. There is injury management also in place. He had already undergone a lengthy rehab process in the lead up to the 2023 World Cup. Ideally, everyone is working to not see a repeat because spending a long time in rehab in case of another injury won’t be easy on him,” sources had told this paper.
Tendulkar was effusive in his praise for Bumrah’s contributions in this series. “Bumrah started off really well, got five wickets in the first Test. He didn’t play the second but in the third and fourth again at Lord’s he got 5 wickets. So, out of 3 Tests he played, he has picked five wickets twice.”
Tendulkar also summed up Bumrah’s career, ranking him “at the top”. “The quality of Bumrah is exceptional. It’s unbelievable what he has been able to do so far. To me, he has been a consistent performer without any doubt, I would put him right at the top with anyone else.”
Pace legend Glenn McGrath had earlier told his paper about Bumrah’s issues, and the need to have an off season to recover. “Unfortunately, what he does is pretty tough on the body. Especially when you’re playing a lot of cricket, there’s no time to have an off-season. He really needs to get a lot stronger physically and fitter to put up with the stresses of fast bowling. And he needs an off-season. It will get him strong through the season,” McGrath said.
