ENG vs IND: "Baffling.." Former Australian cricketers slam India for resting Jasprit Bumrah for 2nd test

Akash Deep replaced Jasprit Bumrah in India playing XI for second test.

Former Australian cricketers Aaron Finch and Tom Moody slammed India’s decision to rest Jasprit Bumrah for the second test against England. The encounter commenced on July 2 at Edgbaston, Birmingham.

During the toss, India captain Shubman Gill revealed that Jasprit Bumrah has been rested for the Edgbaston test to manage his workload. Akash Deep replaced him in the playing XI. India made two more changes in the playing XI, where they included Washington Sundar and Nitish Kumar Reddy in place of Sai Sudharsan and Shardul Thakur.

Jasprit Bumrah captured a wonderful five-wicket haul in the first test at Headingley. The right-arm pacer is going to feature in only three tests out of five matches during India’s tour of England 2025, as confirmed by the team management and the pacer himself.

Aaron Finch and Tom Moody slam India for resting Jasprit Bumrah in the second test

Finch and Moody took to X (formerly Twitter) to criticise India’s decision to rest Bumrah in the second test. According to Finch, Bumrah should have been picked in the encounter if he was fit.

“If Bumrah was fit to play then surely you need to pick the best bowler in the world? At the very least Kuldeep has the be in the XI if you’re worried about taking 20 wickets. Yes, he might be more expensive but he’s the next best attacking option!”, Finch wrote on X.

Moody feels that India has taken a big risk by keeping only five specialist batsmen in their playing XI for the Edgbaston test.

“India’s selection for this test is baffling. No Bumrah is one thing, but to only have 5 specialist batsmen is a gamble. The fixation on all-rounders who are there to offer depth with bat and ball has never worked. Specialists are always going to offer more over a test”, Moody posted on X.

Notably, Gill mentioned that Bumrah will return for the third test at the Lord’s. Talking about the match, England skipper Ben Stokes won the toss and chose to bowl first. At the end of the first session, India reached 98/2, losing KL Rahul (2) and Karun Nair (31) cheaply.

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