LONDON: Soon after the loss in the first Test at Leeds, India head coach Gautam Gambhir has affirmed that they will not change their plan to play Jasprit Bumrah in only three of the five matches of the series. "We won't change it. For us to manage his workload is more important. There is a lot of cricket going forward," Gambhir had told journalists after the first Test.
More than a month later with the series literally hanging in balance and India needing to win the fifth match starting at the Oval on Thursday, Gambhir and Co have to take an important call - should Bumrah play or not?
And there are reasons for both. It's not that India's pace attack becomes toothless in absence of Bumrah. They showed it during the second match in Edgbaston under Mohammed Siraj. The Hyderabad pacer and Akash Deep bowled in tandem in the match to scalp a five-for each and help India level the series 1-1. But going without their pace spearhead in the series decider will also not be easy.
After India made a remarkable comeback and drew the Manchester Test through their 143-over batting over five sessions, the head coach was once again questioned about pacers' fitness and he replied all of them are fit and ready for selection. India lost Akash Deep due to groin injury after the Lord's match while his possible replacement, Arshdeep Singh, too sustained an injury in the bowling hand during the team's net session ahead of the fourth match. Pace bowling-allrounder Nitish Kumar Reddy was then ruled out due to knee injury as India came into the fourth Test crippled with injuries.
"We haven't had any conversation around the combination for the last Test," Gambhir told journalists after India's fightback on Sunday. "No decision has been made on whether Jasprit Bumrah will play or not. Ultimately, whoever plays, they will try and do the job for the country."
Batting coach Sitanshu Kotak was also asked about Bumrah's availability on Tuesday and he said a call will be made by the head coach, physio and captain Shubman Gill. "He bowled one innings in the last match. So obviously the head coach, our physio and captain, they will have a discussion and decide. No discussion has been done about Bumrah playing the match yet," he replied.
He also said the Oval wicket has some grass, a tad higher than the Manchester surface and moisture in it. This can make the team management reverse its decision on playing Bumrah only for three matches and the fact that the speedster bowled only in the first innings in the Manchester Test can only add weight to their possible move.
Irrespective of what combination they got with, India, in all likelihood, would have to make at least a couple of changes to their squad and one of them may be replacing debutant Anshul Kamboj with Akash Deep. The Haryana pacer looked out of place during his maiden international outing a few days back. More than the areas and line and lengths he bowled, it was his military pace that drew attention. He, at times, was bowling at 125 kmph in the match. To be fair on him, even Bumrah was not that quick in the match and it can be attributed to the wet outfield and tendency of the Dukes balls to get soft after 30-35 overs.
The visitors can also bring in fit-again Arshdeep Singh in place of Bumrah, if the team management maintains its previous stand on the pacer's workload management. And if they decide to field the Gujarat speedster with the series at stake, they can still accommodate Arshdeep but in place of one of the all-rounders. And that could only be Shardul Thakur in all probability especially after those match-saving knocks played by spin bowling all-rounder Ravindra Jadeja and Washington Sundar on Day 5 in Manchester. But for that they have to compromise their strategy of strengthening the batting depth even if it means sacrificing a specialist bowler.
Given the calls the current regime has taken in the past, it will only be prudent not to reach a conclusion based on the statements issued by its members. But whatever they will decide in the next couple of days, the decision can make them rethink on strategies they have been following religiously.
