By News18
Indian men鈥檚 cricket team skipper Shubman Gill has clarified Jasprit Bumrah鈥檚 availability for the second Test of the five-match series for the Anderson-Tendulkar Trophy against England at Edgbaston in Birmingham, starting on July 2, Wednesday.
Bumrah was India鈥檚 standout bowler in the first innings of the opening Test at Headingley in Leeds, taking a five-wicket haul that helped India gain a narrow six-run lead. However, he went wicketless in the second innings as England successfully chased a challenging target of 371, winning the match by five wickets.
After the series opener, Team India head coach Gautam Gambhir confirmed that the management would adhere to Jasprit Bumrah鈥榮 three-match utilisation plan. Despite recommendations from fans and former cricketers to play Bumrah in all five Tests, Gambhir rejected the idea, expressing concerns about managing his workload.
What Gill Said About Bumrah鈥檚 Availability?
Shubman Gill on Tuesday said that the final team combination will be decided after the last practice session.
鈥淏umrah is surely available. We have to look into this workload management. We have to look into the final combination today at the nets,鈥 Gill was quoted as saying to reporters at the pre-match press conference.
鈥淲e knew prior to the series that we would get Jasprit for three games, but we had that sorted beforehand. Yes, obviously we would miss him, but we have our plans sorted,鈥 he added.
Earlier, India鈥檚 assistant coach Ryan ten Doeschate also addressed Bumrah鈥檚 status, confirming he is available but the management has not yet decided on his participation in the upcoming match.
鈥淵eah, he鈥檚 available for the game, obviously. We know from the start he鈥檚 only going to play three out of the five. He鈥檚 obviously had eight days to recover from the last Test. But given conditions and workload and how we think we can best manage for the next four games, we haven鈥檛 made a call on that. We鈥檙e going to see what the other guys are with their workload as well. So technically, yes, he鈥檚 available. But we haven鈥檛 made a decision on whether he鈥檚 going to play or not yet,鈥 Doeschate had said in the press conference.
(With inputs from Agencies)