‘Bumrah is not here’: Shubman Gill sees big opportunity for India's other bowlers to step up and seize Sri Lanka series

Shubman Gill says Jasprit Bumrah's absence gives India's other bowlers a big opportunity to step up and make their mark in the Sri Lanka Test series.

India captain Shubman Gill has challenged his bowling attack to embrace the opportunity created by Jasprit Bumrah’s absence as the visitors prepare to begin their two-Test series against Sri Lanka in Galle on Saturday.

Shubman Gill urged the other Indian bowlers to step up in Bumrah's absence. (PTI, X images)

India enter the series without their premier fast bowler after Bumrah was ruled out with a left knee injury. The pacer had initially been named in the squad, subject to fitness, but continued to experience discomfort following an injury sustained during the ODI series in England last month. After undergoing rehabilitation and an assessment at the BCCI Centre of Excellence in Bengaluru, he was not cleared for the tour. Uncapped Jammu and Kashmir quick Auqib Nabi was subsequently named as his replacement.

Bumrah’s absence leaves India without the bowler who has so often been their principal wicket-taking threat across conditions. The challenge assumes greater significance in Galle, where the surface has traditionally brought spinners into the game, but extracting 20 wickets can still require patience, invention and sustained pressure. Gill, however, sees the situation as an opportunity for the rest of India’s attack rather than something his side should be preoccupied with.

Gill wants India bowlers to make their mark

Speaking ahead of the opening Test, the India captain discussed the need to manufacture wicket-taking opportunities on subcontinental pitches, particularly during periods when the surface offers little assistance.

“So, you have to keep trying different things to be able to take wickets, especially in subcontinent wickets, you know, you have to create opportunities, especially in day 1 and day 2. There could be a chance if there is not much happening from the wicket. So, how can you create pressure, you know, how can you not let the game slip away too much from you. So, yes, having those kind of creative fields, and I think some of our bowlers, Bumrah is not here, but I think it is a really good opportunity for some of the other bowlers to really step up and have a mark on the series,” Gill said.

The comment underlined one of the central challenges confronting Gill at the start of the series. Without Bumrah, India will have to distribute the wicket-taking responsibility across a relatively less established pace group while also leaning heavily on their spin resources. Mohammed Siraj and Prasidh Krishna are among India’s pace options, while the squad also includes Nabi and Gurnoor Brar. India could, however, load their attack with spin in conditions expected to suit slow bowling, with Ravindra Jadeja, Manav Suthar and Kuldeep Yadav among the options available to Gill.

The captain also indicated later in his press conference that selection among India’s fast bowlers remained finely balanced, praising Gurnoor’s ability to extract pace and bounce with the older ball while describing Prasidh’s recent bowling as the best he had seen from him. For India, the immediate task is significant. The two-match series forms part of the World Test Championship, with the opening Test in Galle followed by the second in Colombo from August 23. With Bumrah unavailable, Gill now wants the bowlers behind him in India’s pecking order to turn that absence into their opportunity.