"He must not be your frontline pick…"- Sanjay Manjrekar drops bombshell on Jasprit Bumrah's workload debate

Sanjay Manjrekar feels Jasprit Bumrah must adjust for Indian cricket and not the other way around.

Reputed cricket commentator Sanjay Manjrekar has shared his opinion on the debate surrounding Jasprit Bumrah’s workload. The former Indian cricketer feels that Bumrah should improve his fitness to be able to play tests for India consistently.

Since the conclusion of the Anderson-Tendulkar Trophy 2025 earlier this month, Bumrah’s workload management has been a topic of discussion. The right-arm pacer played only three games for India during the England tour. Ahead of the series, he was advised to play only three out of five games.

The senior Indian pacer picked 14 wickets across three games, including two five-wicket hauls. However, some former cricketers slammed Bumrah for missing the crucial fifth test at The Oval and missing two games. India needed to win the final test at any cost to evade a series defeat.

Surprisingly, India failed to win any of the three tests that Bumrah played. In his absence in the second test at Edgbaston and the fifth test at The Oval, Mohammed Siraj clinched five-wicket hauls to guide them to victories.

Indian cricket must not adjust for Jasprit Bumrah: Sanjay Manjrekar

In his column for Hindustan Times, Manjrekar wrote that Bumrah should not be considered as the frontline pacer by selectors if he cannot play a few test matches in a row. He also added that other bowlers should be given preference over him in such a scenario.

“If he cannot play more than two matches in a row or sometimes even more than one, he must not be your frontline pick. Players who are match fit, eager, keen to play and perform should be picked any day for me over a highly skilled player,” he wrote.

“It will motivate such enthusiastic players even more. This is not an idealistic position to take, but it’s the right one for the long-term health of a team sport,” he added.

Furthermore, Manjrekar reckoned that Bumrah will have to improve his fitness levels if he wants to play tests for India. The 60-year-old also noted that it’s Bumrah who needs to adjust for the Indian Cricket Team and not vice-versa.

“As for Bumrah, of whom I am a fan, if he really wants to serve Indian Test cricket, longevity and durability is an imperative for him, it’s after all, the true test of a great athlete is to still turn up when not 100% fit and deliver,” he wrote.

“Indian cricket must not adjust for Bumrah, Bumrah must. That is, if he wants to. By making some tough choices or working even harder on his fitness, this fitness bar can be raised to whatever levels one wants, like all fast bowling greats have done before him,” Manjrekar further added.

Indian pacer Bhuvneshwar Kumar also supported Bumrah’s call on workload management, saying that it is challenging to play consistently across all three formats.

On the contrary, former India captains Mohammad Azharuddin and Dilip Vengsarkar slammed Bumrah’s decision. Vengsarkar questioned why the senior Indian pacer did not rest himself during the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2025 instead of two crucial games against England.

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