 "Jasprit Bumrah communicated to the BCCI that he won't play all five matches. Image: PTI")
Indian fast bowler Jasprit Bumrah recently revealed why he turned down the chance to become India’s next Test captain. Speaking to former cricketer Dinesh Karthik during an interview for Sky Sports, Bumrah explained that he had already spoken to the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) about his workload concerns even before Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli retired from Test cricket.
Bumrah on why he turned down Test captaincy
Bumrah said he spoke to his doctor, who told him that he may not be able to handle the pressure of playing all the matches, especially in a long five-match Test series. Bumrah added that he was asked to be smart about his workload management and hence he decided to decline BCCI’s offer of Test captaincy. Bumrah has had back issues in the past and missed several important matches because of injury.
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“Before Rohit and Virat retired during the IPL, I had spoken to the BCCI about my workloads going forward in a five-test match series. I’ve spoken to the people who have managed my back. I’ve spoken to the surgeon as well, who’s always spoken to me about how smart you have to be about the workloads. So I did speak to him, and then we came to the conclusion that I have to be a little smarter. So then I called the BCCI and said I don’t want to be looked at in a leadership role because I won’t be able to play all the Test matches in a five-test match series,” Bumrah said.
With Rohit and Kohli both retired from red-ball cricket and Bumrah declining to take up the leadership role, the BCCI zeroed in on Shubman Gill and Rishabh Pant. While Gill has been made the captain of the Test side, Pant has been appointed his deputy. Bumrah, on the other hand, will continue to play a key role in the leadership group, which also includes the head coach Gautam Gambhir.
Meanwhile, Gambhir had earlier confirmed that Bumrah would not play all five Test matches against England due to workload concerns. However, he did not specify which matches Bumrah would play and which ones he would miss. The first Test of the five-match series against England will start on 20 June in Leeds.