Former Indian bowling coach Bharat Arun feels that Jasprit Bumrah is not the ideal candidate to captain Team India in Tests. He believes the management needs to take special care of the pacer and give him sufficient breaks to keep him fresh.
Virat Kohli's stepping down as India captain in Test cricket recently has given rise to a debate on who could be India’s next captain in the red-ball format. It is expected that Rohit Sharma, being the vice-captain, will take over the role and many reports have also suggested the same.
But many pundits and fans have also batted for one between KL Rahul and Rishabh Pant for the captaincy role. Some have backed pacer Jasprit Bumrah to continue the legacy of Virat Kohli as the next captain.
Different people have suggested various names for the role and the latest to join the bandwagon is former Indian bowling coach Bharat Arun.
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Speaking to News9, Bharat Arun said that Test captaincy should be given to someone who can look at it rationally and will only make team better. He backed Rohit Sharma to lead Team India in the longest format of the game, saying that he’s a very ‘astute’ captain, who had proved his mettle.
He added that with Virat Kohli not being there, Rohit Sharma with his experience is the best player to captain the team.
“It has to be someone who can look at it rationally, as to what can be done for this team to get better. I think yes, Rohit Sharma is there, he’s a very astute captain who has proved it wherever he has captained. He’s got the best out of the players and since Virat has given up the captaincy, Rohit with his experience is one of the best captains,” Bharat Arun said.
Bharat Arun further said that he would prefer the batter to captain the Test side because he can play all three formats without being rested. He remarked that although Jasprit Bumrah has the ability to lead the side, there’s a big question mark over him being able to sustain all three formats all the time.
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He added that Bumrah is one bowler who needs to be given sufficient break and taken care of to keep him fresh and therefore he's not sure if he can lead the side.
“I would prefer a batsman because he can play in all three formats without being rested as much. Jasprit Bumrah is someone who has the mind to do it but then again, giving the captaincy to Bumrah … would be able to sustain all three formats all the time? That is the big question.
“Bumrah is the one bowler we have to really take care of. He needs to be given sufficient breaks between matches and series, for him to stay fresh. So taking all this into account, I’m not too sure he can be the captain,” he said.
It remains to be seen who the selectors will pick as the next Indian Test skipper. They are likely to make the announcement ahead of the Test series against Sri Lanka, starting 25th February.
(News9 inputs)
