Manjrekar Questions Bumrah’s Availability and Wants Greater Commitment to India

Sanjay Manjrekar has said he is puzzled by how Jasprit Bumrah’s career is being managed, after the fast bowler was rested from India’s upcoming T20I assignments.

The workload question

Bumrah has been left out of the T20Is for workload reasons, having played 13 of 14 matches in the IPL. By his own high standards that season was modest, with just four wickets. Manjrekar was particularly confused because Bumrah has nonetheless been selected for the Asian Games later this year.

Speaking on Sony Sports Network, he argued that Asian Games results fade quickly, and that cricket is still defined by bilateral series and World Cups. He said he wished Bumrah would commit himself more to India, and he suggested that the bowler rests for some India games while staying fit for others.

Manjrekar accepted that workload is a real concern in Test cricket, where a 50-over day is demanding. But since Bumrah played the entire IPL, he felt a few T20 matches in Ireland and England would have been manageable.

Leadership

Manjrekar also looked back at Bumrah’s captaincy potential. He said the bowler had been his first choice to lead India in T20Is, but that Bumrah has not seemed keen on the role. As a result, he suggested, the captaincy has gone prematurely to others, among them Shubman Gill and Shreyas Iyer.