Jasprit Bumrah was the lone warrior for the Indian team in their recent 1-3 Test series loss to Australia in the Border-Gavaskar Trophy 2024-25. Bumrah carried the Indian bowling attack, seldom receiving support from the other end.
Bumrah was adjudged Player of the Series as he ended up with 32 wickets in 5 Tests and took three five-wicket hauls as well. It was the most picked by an Indian bowler in a series in Australia, and the best show by an Indian seamer in a Test series.
However, thanks to his workload, Bumrah’s body gave in the final Test in Sydney and after bowling 10 overs on day 2 of the SCG Test, his back issues led to him going to hospital for scans. He didn’t take any further part in the Test that India lost by 6 wickets.
The issues, on which the BCCI has yet to issue an official comment, did raise workload concerns, since the 31-year-old bowled 151.2 overs throughout the series, including 53.2 overs at the MCG, the highest he has bowled in a single match.
However, Bumrah’s workload issues were belittled by former India medium pacer Balwinder Singh Sandhu. He said that bowling 15-20 overs per innings wasn’t a big deal.
"Workload? How many overs did he bowl? 150-something, right? But in how many matches or innings? Five matches or nine innings, correct? That comes down to 16 overs per innings or 30 overs per match. And he didn’t bowl those 15-plus overs in one go. He bowled in spells. So, is it a big deal? Workload management is bull****. These are Australian terms, created by Australians. Workload management is nothing. I don’t agree with this. I come from an era when cricketers used to listen to their bodies and no one else. I don’t agree with this at all," Sandhu told the Times of India.
The veteran cricketer fumed at Bumrah saying that if his body does not allow him to bowl at least 20 overs an innings, he should stop playing Test cricket and should only focus on T20 cricket.
"Bowling 15 overs in a day, and that too in different spells, is not a big deal for a bowler. You’re not bowling on all five days of a Test match. He took three or four spells to bowl those overs. Today, you have the best physios, the best masseurs, and excellent doctors to take care of your body. If a bowler can’t bowl 20 overs in an innings, he should forget about playing for India.
If you want to represent India, you should have the strength to bowl at least 20 overs in an innings. If you can’t, then it’s better to go back and play T20s, where you only need to bowl four overs. Even those four overs are bowled in three spells," he added.
He gave the example of himself and Kapil Dev, saying that they were used to bowl 25-30 overs in a day.
"We used to bowl 25–30 overs in a day. Kapil (Dev) has bowled long spells throughout his career. Your body and muscles get conditioned when you bowl, bowl, and bowl. So, I don’t agree with this workload management concept," the former pacer said.
Jasprit Bumrah is currently working with the NCA medical team and is slated to miss the England white-ball series to rest and be ready for the ICC Champions Trophy 2025.
