IRE v IND 2023: “Make sure we don’t overburden him,” Abhishek Nayar opposes handing captaincy to Jasprit Bumrah

Jasprit Bumrah led the Indian team from the front in the first T20I against Ireland.

Jasprit Bumrah | GettyJasprit Bumrah led the Indian team from the front on his much-awaited comeback to international cricket after recovering from back surgery.

In the first T20I against Ireland in Dublin on Friday (August 18), Bumrah bowled a fiery spell. The right-arm quick returned with the figures of 2 for 24 in his four overs and earned the Player-of-the-Match award in India’s two-run victory (via DLS method) over Ireland.

Meanwhile, former India cricketer Abhishek Nayar has warned the Indian selectors against handing Jasprit Bumrah captaincy in all forms of the game.

Nayar’s comment came after former India wicketkeeper batter Kiran More claimed that Bumrah would make a good captain across formats.

“He has to be given captaincy. He is a good thinker of the game. He is a potential future captain in Test cricket, across all formats as well. I have always believed fast bowlers make good captains," said More after India’s win over Ireland in first T20I.

Nayar though didn’t agree with More as the former said: “It depends on his fitness. For a fast bowler to lead, we saw that with Pat Cummins in the Ashes. I think for you to bowl, play all formats and then lead, it can sometimes be a bit taxing, which is why we see batters taking over the mantle."

“You can’t have Jasprit Bumrah get injured in the process of doing that. For T20Is, makes sense. For longer formats makes sense but I would just say ‘save him and keep him for important tournaments’ and make sure we don’t overburden him and overuse him. Let him enjoy his game because captaincy doesn’t let you enjoy your game," he added.

Notably, Bumrah has already led India in Test cricket. He was named the captain of the team for a rescheduled Test match against England at Edgbaston last year after Rohit Sharma tested positive for COVID-19.

 
 

By Salman Anjum - 20 Aug, 2023

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