Azharuddin also praised Shubman Gill for his captaincy debut in England.
Mohammad Azharuddin has not held back while discussing Jasprit Bumrah's workload management, stating that, considering the state of India's fast-bowling stocks at the moment, the idea has to be carefully considered and applied more effectively.
In the end, the matches that India missed were the ones that Bumrah missed, as he participated in three of the five Test matches against England for the Anderson-Tendulkar Trophy.
The former captain of India believes that the decision-makers must find a way to guarantee that the pacer is accessible whenever the team needs him, since the importance of Bumrah cannot be overstated.
Jasprit Bumrah played the first Test in Headingley, Lord’s, and Manchester and ended up with 14 wickets and two five-wicket hauls, with one coming in the third Test at Lord’s.
Mohammad Siraj and Prasidh Krishna were praised by Azharuddin for stepping up in the absence of Bumrah at Edgbaston and the Oval, but he believes that excluding the Gujarat pacer while he isn't hurt isn't the best course of action.
"If there is an injury issue, then the Board and the player have to decide. However, I feel once you are on the team, you can't pick and choose your matches. There is a workload, but at this level, you must manage it. You are playing for the country. It was a different story that Siraj, along with Prasidh [Krishna] and Akash Deep, rose to the occasion, and we were fortunate that we could win without Bumrah, but what happens if India needs Bumrah badly in a particular situation?" Azharuddin was quoted as saying by Mid-day.
Apart from Bumrah, Mohammad Azharuddin also praised Shubman Gill for his captaincy in his debut series, replacing Rohit Sharma at the helm. Azharuddin, who captained India in 1992 and 1996 when they were heavily defeated, is aware of the hardships of captaining the Indian team in England.
"At the start of the tour, many were apprehensive of new captain Gill, but in the end, this young team came out with flying colors. The batters did a very good job, particularly Shubman, KL Rahul, and [Ravindra] Jadeja. Gill has started his tenure as captain on a high note," Azharuddin added.
India’s next Test assignment will be at home when they host the West Indies for two Tests in October.