The talismanic Jasprit Bumrah was the Player of the Tournament when India won the T20 World Cup last year. In the ongoing Asia Cup, he has been overshadowed at times by India's spin-bowling troika, despite bowling well.
So far in the Asia Cup, Bumrah has accounted for five wickets in four matches at an average of 22. Apart from the Super Four encounter against Pakistan, where he conceded 45 runs in four overs without picking up a wicket, Bumrah has been exemplary.
However, fans are more concerned about
his fitness, especially after he decided to play only three out of the five Tests against England in the Anderson-Tendulkar Trophy to manage his workload.
Former India cricketer Mohammad Kaif put out a tweet on Thursday, September 25, noting that Bumrah was used in different stages of the innings by Rohit Sharma. Kaif mentioned that Bumrah didn't bowl two overs on the trot under Rohit's captaincy. The cricketer-turned-expert said that the Gujarat seamer nowadays only bowls when his body is warmed up, and this is because he wants to avoid getting injured.
Kaif stated that the strategy to use three overs of Bumrah inside the powerplay and keeping just one in hand for the death overs could be detrimental for the Men in Blue against stronger teams in next year's T20 World Cup.
"Bumrah under Rohit would generally bowl overs 1, 13, 17, 19. Under Surya, in Asia cup, he bowled a three-overs spell at the start. To avoid injury, Bumrah these days, prefers to bowl while his body is warmed up. 1 over of Bumrah in the remaining 14 overs is a huge relief for batters, against stronger teams at World Cup, this could hurt india," Kaif wrote on 'X'.
However, Bumrah replied to this tweet a few hours later and wrote: "Inaccurate before inaccurate again".
Bumrah is expected to be rested for the inconsequential encounter between India and Sri Lanka on Friday, September 26. He will play a key role in Sunday's final against the winner of the virtual semi-final clash between Pakistan and Bangladesh, which takes place on Thursday.
