Bumrah had given examples of Kapil Dev and Imran Khan, pacers who succeeded as captains.
Jasprit Bumrah shouldn’t be chasing the Indian team’s captaincy opined former Pakistan cricketer Basit Ali. His words came after Bumrah commented on the lack of captaincy opportunities for fast bowlers. Bumrah has captained India in one Test and a handful of T20Is.
In an interview last month, Bumrah underlined his confidence that fast bowlers can make outstanding captains, citing Kapil Dev and Imran Khan's successful captaincies, which guided India and Pakistan to World Cup titles, respectively.
Basit Ali, in a video on his YouTube channel, disagreed with Bumrah's viewpoint. He underlined that Dev and Khan were selected leaders after establishing themselves as all-rounders rather than simply bowlers.
"About Jasprit Bumrah's statement, it's just like how Babar Azam likes captaincy. In my opinion, he should not chase captaincy. He is a top-class bowler and should be focusing just on that," Basit said on his YouTube channel.
"He gave the examples of Kapil Dev and Imran Khan's captaincy. However, they had become all-rounders, which is why they succeeded as captains. They were not appointed captains when they came into their teams as bowlers. This is the difference between a bowler and an all-rounder,” Basit added.
While noting Australian speedster Pat Cummins' success as a captain, Basit noted that few fast bowlers had flourished as captains or coaches.
"He also spoke about Pat Cummins. Yes, Cummins is a good captain, but there are very few fast bowlers who can become a good coach or captain. My best wishes to Jasprit Bumrah. There is a chance that he could be made the captain after the Champions Trophy," Basit added.
Bumrah has led India as a stand-in captain in a one-off Test against England at Edgbaston in 2022, as well as in a three-match T20I series against Ireland last year when India won 2-0.