Earlier this year, Indian pace spearhead Jasprit Bumrah faced backlash for playing just three of the five Test matches on the tour of England to manage his workload.
Since then, the ace fast bowler has participated in nearly all of India's international assignments, including the Asia Cup, two Tests against the West Indies, five T20Is against Australia, and the two Tests against South Africa.
Bumrah has just skipped six ODI matches in between and is currently playing the five-T20I series against the Proteas.
Ever since Bumrah sustained a back spasm in the Sydney Test against Australia, the Indian team management has been extra careful about managing his workload. As a result of that injury, he missed the ICC Champions Trophy 2025 and the initial few matches of the IPL 2025 season for Mumbai Indians.
Ahead of the England tour, Bumrah had revealed that he himself requested the BCCI not to consider him for Test captaincy after Rohit Sharma's retirement, as he would not be able to play all five Tests.
Amid the growing debate around Bumrah's workload, former India batter Robin Uthappa has said that speedster’s "demanding action" and "high pace" put immense pressure on his body, and managing his workload is absolutely necessary to keep him match fit.
"He is an absolute match-winner, and managing his workload is crucial. Fast bowling is probably the toughest skill in the sport, and Bumrah does it at high pace with a demanding action," said Uthappa on JioStar's 'Cricket Live'.
"You want to protect that, but at the same time, you want him to play enough cricket. We've seen glimpses of his brilliance, and hopefully he can build consistency over the next few games heading into the World Cup," he added.
The penultimate T20I of the five-match series between India and South Africa was abandoned due to severe fog at the Ekana International Cricket Stadium in Lucknow on Wednesday (December 17).
The series will conclude at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad on Friday (December 19), with the Proteas facing a must-win situation to level it.
"South Africa have played very competitively, but they've been a bit hot and cold in the T20I series. That said, it has still been very entertaining. I thought they bowled really well, while their batting has been a little inconsistent.
"It's going to be an interesting contest (in Ahmedabad) because they will want to level the series. Overall, they've had a great tour. They dominated the Test series (2-0) and were competitive in the white-ball formats as well. India came back strongly, but South Africa will want to win the next one and head home with their heads held high," Uthappa remarked.
(With PTI Inputs)
