Former Australian pacer Glenn McGrath has suggested the injury-prone Indian fast bowler, Jasprit Bumrah, to work harder off the field to extend his career.

In the past few years, Bumrah has faced several setbacks due to injuries. The right-arm quick has already missed a few marquee events due to his back injuries, including the 2022 T20 World Cup, the 2023 World Test Championship Final, and the 2025 Champions Trophy.

Bumrah has been dealing with a back issue since the fifth and final Border-Gavaskar Test Test against Australia at SCG in January this year.

Speaking to Times of India, McGrath said that Bumrah had found ways to manage the stress he has put on his body in the past few occasions, but he still needs to be smarter to avoid the persistent injuries.

“He puts more stress on his body than the other bowlers. He has found ways to manage it, but unfortunately not all the time. He has done it before (making a comeback from injury), he will know better than anyone (about) the recovery time, the time in the gym. He is not as young as he used to be, so he has to be smarter about what he does,” McGrath stated.

“He has to work even harder off the field. Being a fast bowler is like driving a car. If you do not top it up with fuel, you are going to run out of fuel sooner or later. My fuel tank was bigger than Jasprit’s because I did not bowl as quickly as him. These guys know how they work at their best. If India are under the pump, they need him,” he added.

Meanwhile, Jasprit Bumrah is likely to miss the first few matches of the IPL 2025 season for Mumbai Indians as he is still recovering from the lower back injury. In his absence, the five-time champions will depend on other pacers like Trent Boult, Corbin Bosch and Deepak Chahar to deliver.

The Hardik Pandya-led side will open its campaign against Chennai Super Kings on March 23 at Chepauk.