It’s been two weeks since India capped off a memorable win against England at The Oval to ensure a 2-2 draw in the first-ever Anderson-Tendulkar trophy, but the Indian team's decision to sit Jasprit Bumrah out of the series draw continues to make news. Jasprit Bumrah's workload management has blown out of proportion, with the India pacer's decision to skip two out of the five Tests evoking mixed reactions. While some feel Bumrah's fitness is of the utmost importance, legends such as Sunil Gavaskar and Sandip Patil believe that when you're playing for the country, nothing else matters.
Gavaskar, in particular, has been very vocal about his take on Bumrah. Now, as another big team selection is due for the Asia Cup, for which Bumrah has reportedly made himself available, Gavaskar, bringing up the topic, has again fuelled debate. In an indirect warning to Bumrah and the BCCI's selection led by Ajit Agarkar, Gavaskar has urged the importance of prioritising Bumrah's assignments, while questioning the decision to rest the pacer in the Birmingham and Oval Tests.
"Nobody is indispensable. That’s why it is of prime importance for the selectors to now decide when Jasprit Bumrah should be playing. There's already been a lot of debate about his appearances in the recently concluded series in England. To be fair, he had informed the selection committee that he could play only three Tests out of the five. The debate that has generated some heat is whether he should have played the last must-win Test match, especially since it was the grassiest pitch at the Oval in a long time. The next Test match was in early October, and so there were two clear months for him to rest and recover in time for that. The Indian team management stated that he wasn't picked considering his future. This is where the lines between what is good for the individual and what is good for Indian cricket got a little blurred," Gavaskar wrote in his column for Mid-day.
{{/usCountry}}"Nobody is indispensable. That’s why it is of prime importance for the selectors to now decide when Jasprit Bumrah should be playing. There's already been a lot of debate about his appearances in the recently concluded series in England. To be fair, he had informed the selection committee that he could play only three Tests out of the five. The debate that has generated some heat is whether he should have played the last must-win Test match, especially since it was the grassiest pitch at the Oval in a long time. The next Test match was in early October, and so there were two clear months for him to rest and recover in time for that. The Indian team management stated that he wasn't picked considering his future. This is where the lines between what is good for the individual and what is good for Indian cricket got a little blurred," Gavaskar wrote in his column for Mid-day.
{{/usCountry}}"Surely at that stage if he was fit, then for Indian cricket's sake, he had to play. Whether then it was his call or the management’s call not to play is not known, but in the end after India’s win it showed once again if ever there was need to know that nobody is indispensable in the game. The game just moves on."
Sunil Gavaskar has a suggestion for the BCCI, Ajit Agarkar
Having made it to the final of the first two World Test Championship finals in its first two editions, India failed to qualify for the summit clash the previous time around. However, with the fresh cycle underway, Gavaskar reckons Bumrah should play the next four Tests for India – two against West Indies and two against South Africa, contrary to the belief that he must be rested ahead of the three ODIs and five T20Is in Australia starting October-end.
"That's why now comes the tricky decision for the selectors. What is more important? Qualifying for the World Test Championship or playing some bilateral white ball games which have no bearing at all. If India have to qualify for the WTC, then Jasprit Bumrah, being the premier fast bowler in the game, has to play in the four Tests that India have lined up between early October and late November. There's a gap of a month between these Tests against West Indies and South Africa which means that he should be rested for the white ball series. That should be the logic but then Indian cricket has got its own logic as was seen in the recently concluded series," Gavaskar explained.
"The selection committee has taken some bold calls in choosing the squads which has shown remarkable results, and they have to be lauded for that, but when it comes to the selection of the final XI that is entirely the management’s call and that’s how it should be."