"Being an Indian player there is going to be a lot of workload" - Dale Steyn on Jasprit Bumrah being rested for 4th India-England Test
Former South African pacer Dale Steyn feels Jasprit Bumrah is being managed well by the Indian team management, considering the amount of cricket played by them.
Bumrah has been in scintillating form with the ball, leading the charts with 17 wickets in the ongoing India-England five-Test series. With the hosts leading the series by a margin of 2-1, the ace pacer has been rested for the crucial fourth Test at Ranchi as part of workload management.
In an interview with TOI, Steyn was asked about India managing Bumrah's workload, to which he said:
"I don't know how his workload is going right now. I suppose being an Indian player there is going to be a lot of workload. There is a lot of cricket in India these days. The Indian team is playing a lot of cricket and people want to play against them. They are traveling most of the time. So, there is a huge percentage of the bowlers who will be bowling a lot of overs. Bumrah could be one of those guys. But he is being managed quite well."
Steyn further praised Bumrah and added that the think tank managed the workload well with proper communication.
"There is a great crop of fast bowlers India currently has in Shami, Siraj, and Bumrah. There is a heap of fast bowlers coming through. I think they manage them well. There is good communication with Bumrah himself about what he wants to do, when he wants to play and when he takes time off. It seems like India really doesn't miss him because the stepped-in bowlers are up to the standards. It is a very good thing about Indian fast bowling," Steyn added.
Meanwhile, Jasprit Bumrah's pace-bowling partner, Mohammed Siraj, was rested for the second Test and returned in style in the third match with a four-wicket haul in the first innings.
India have also drafted Bengal pacer Akash Deep into the squad along with Mukesh Kumar for the upcoming fourth Test in Ranchi, starting on February 23.
"In the past few years, Indian fast-bowling stocks have gone up hugely" - Dale Steyn
Dale Steyn applauded the growth in the Indian pace-bowling ranks over the years, which enables the side to rest someone of Jasprit Bumrah's caliber.
Along with Bumrah, India has also been well-served by the excellence of Mohammed Shami and Mohammed Siraj in the past few years. The trio played a vital role in India's dominating wins at the 2023 ODI World Cup until the loss against Australia in the final.
"If you go in the past and talk about Indian cricket, you think of spinners," Steyn said. "You think of Harbhajan Singh and Anil Kumble. You think of spinners. Other than Zaheer Khan and Irfan Pathan. There are other bunch obviously but you really think of spinners.
"In the past few years, Indian fast-bowling stocks have gone up hugely. I don't think we should be worrying too much about Bumrah because he is managing himself quite well."
During the ongoing England series, Jasprit Bumrah became the fastest Indian and second-fastest Asian pacer to scalp 150 Test wickets.
On the other hand, Shami was the leading wicket-taker of the 2023 ODI World Cup, with 24 scalps in only seven games, including three five-wicket hauls.