Former Indian cricketer Sanjay Manjrekar believes that if Jasprit Bumrah wants to play more test matches for India, he should prioritize Test Cricket above white-ball games. The 30-year-old was instrumental in the team’s win over South Africa in the second test in Cape Town.
Jasprit Bumrah ripped through South Africa’s batting line, taking wickets at regular intervals. The paceman took his ninth five-wicket haul in Tests, picking up six wickets as India bowled out South Africa for 176 in 2nd innings. The Indian speedster along with Dean Elgar, was named Player of the Series for his outstanding performance in the series.
During a conversation on Star Sports, Sanjay Manjrekar was asked about how much Test cricket Bumrah has left in him and suggested that the time spent on the previous three-match ODI series may have been better employed by playing an additional Test for the Freedom Trophy to decide the winner.
“It’s up to him really. If he cares a lot about Test cricket, he will make sure that he plays more of Test cricket and less of some of the random white-ball bilateral cricket that gets played.”
“I have a lot of time for private leagues but that three-match ODI series (before the Tests), ask people who are cricket fans, what is the result of that series or who played well in the first ODI. Nobody will remember but just imagine if that time was used to have a third Test match,” Sanjay Manjrekar said.
Jasprit Bumrah was one of India’s star bowlers in the series, finishing with 12 wickets from three innings. It was the Indian pacer’s third five-wicket haul in South Africa, his joint-highest in the Rainbow Nation, and is likely to return to action for the Men in Blue in the five-match test series against England.
Jasprit Bumrah Will Have To Actually Preserve His Body – Sanjay Manjrekar
Sanjay Manjrekar believes that if Jasprit Bumrah wants to focus on Test cricket in the future, he should follow in the footsteps of veteran Indian batting duo Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma.
“It’s not even the 50-over World Cup year. So, it’s up to Jasprit Bumrah. If he wants to play Test cricket, he will have to actually preserve his body. Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma prioritized Test cricket and that’s why they have got so many Test matches under their belt,” Sanjay Manjrekar added.
Indian Speedster Jasprit Bumrah grabbed five of the seven Proteas wickets on Day 2 of the Cape Town Test. The Right-arm pacer is unlikely to play in all of them and could be rotated throughout the series, especially with spinners anticipated to rule the roost in India.
