Will Jasprit Bumrah Play in 4th Test: As has been the theme throughout the ongoing IND vs ENG series so far, the question leading into the 4th Test will be whether India’s spearhead fast bowler Jasprit Bumrah will play in Manchester or whether he will be rested and then feature in the 5th at The Oval.
Due to his workload management and his back injury earlier in the year, Bumrah has been advised to play in three of the five Test matches of the ongoing IND vs ENG Test series for the Anderson-Tendulkar trophy.
Bumrah featured in the first Test in Leeds and the third Test at Lord’s and was rested from the second Test in Edgbaston. Incidentally, India lost the two Tests in which Bumrah played and won the game where he was rested.
But that is not on Bumrah: despite missing one match, Bumrah is the second-highest wicket-taker of the series, with 12 wickets at an average of 21, behind Mohammed Siraj, who has 13 wickets in three Tests at an average of 32. Bumrah’s average is the best among all the bowlers in this series. His economy of 2.9 is only bettered by Jofra Archer, who has played in only one Test.
England lead the series 2-1. The 4th Test will be played at Old Trafford in Manchester from July 23.
The 31-year-old Bumrah, who was the ICC Men’s Cricketer of the Year 2024, is at the peak of his powers, but his back injury has forced him to miss some crucial games this year.
IND vs ENG: Will Jasprit Bumrah Play In 4th Test At Old Trafford, Manchester?
India assistant coach Ryan ten Doeschate said on Saturday that India are “leaning” towards playing Jasprit Bumrah in the 4th Test in Manchester. This is because the series is on the line, and there will be an eight-day gap between the third and fourth Tests.
“No, we’ll make that call [on Bumrah] in Manchester still,” ten Doeschate said on Saturday. “We know we have got him for one of the last two Tests. It’s pretty obvious that the series is on the line now in Manchester, so there will be a leaning towards playing him.”
He added, “But again, we have got to look at all the factors: how many days of cricket are we going to get up there, what do we feel is our best chance of winning that game, and then how that fits in together with The Oval. And looking at the last two games holistically as part of the series.”
Apart from the Bumrah question, India are currently fretting over the wicket-keeper’s position. Rishabh Pant hurt his finger while keeping during England’s first innings at Lord’s. While he did bat in both innings for India, he didn’t keep wickets after taking the blow to his finger. Dhruv Jurel donned the gloves for the rest of the match.
While Pant is expected to be fit to play as a batsman, his participation as a wicket-keeper is in doubt. If Pant is unfit to play the role of the keeper in the 4th Test, then Jurel would come in the side, possibly at the expense of Karun Nair, which might also force a shift in the batting order.
Ten Doeschate said, “Look, I don’t think you’re going to keep Rishabh out of the Test no matter what. He batted with quite a lot of pain in the third Test and it’s only going to get easier and easier on his finger. And keeping’s obviously the last part of the process to make sure that he can keep. We don’t want to go through that again where we have to replace the keeper halfway through innings. Jurel’s in the equation.”
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