"If you rush him for the World Cup then you might lose him for four months later on" - Ravi Shastri on India's Jasprit Bumrah
Former Indian head coach Ravi Shastri believes team India need to be very careful with the recovery of ace fast bowler Jasprit Bumrah ahead of the ODI World Cup later this year. While reports have emerged that Bumrah will be fit to play in the T20Is against Ireland in August, Shastri feels India shouldn't do the mistake that Pakistan did.
Shastri spoke about how Pakistan rushed back speedster Shaheen Afridi for the T20 World Cup and he ended up missing competitive cricket for more than four months.
Speaking exclusively to The Week, here's what Ravi Shastri had to say about India managing Jasprit Bumrah:
"He (Bumrah) is a very important cricketer. But if you rush him for the World Cup then you might lose him for four months later on, much like Shaheen Afridi. So there's a thin line and it needs to be thought about."
Shastri also feels that Hardik Pandya might take over as full-time T20I and ODI captain after the World Cup. He added:
"Let's be clear. His body (Hardik) cannot cope with Test cricket. After the World Cup, I feel he should take over captaincy in white-ball cricket. Rohit should lead India in the World Cup, no question there."
Ravi Shastri on Sanju Samson
Ravi Shastri believes Sanju Samson has what it takes to be consistently successful in international cricket. He feels Samson hasn't quite achieved the consistency that his talent promised and needs to "realize his potential."
On this, Shastri stated:
"Sanju Samson is yet to realize his potential. A match-winner on his day. I will be disappointed if he doesn't end his career all guns blazing. Just like I felt disappointed not to have Rohit Sharma the opener all the time in Test cricket, similarly I feel about Sanju."
Samson has been named in the ODI squad for the series against the West Indies and has a chance to prove his mettle once again.