“They can’t afford to go 0-2 down” - England star’s massive claim on Jasprit Bumrah ahead of ENG vs IND 2025 2nd Test
England pacer Mark Wood believes Jasprit Bumrah must play the second Test of the Anderson-Tendulkar Trophy at Edgbaston, starting July 2, with Team India trailing 0-1 in the best-of-five series. The ace pacer produced a five-wicket haul in the first innings of the series opener but fell away in the second with figures of 0/57 as India lost by five wickets.
The build-up to the second Test has been dominated by news about Bumrah's participation in it. The Indian management and the pacer himself confirmed that the plan was for him to play in three out of the five Tests, given his lengthy injury history.
Talking about the same on Sky Sports, Wood said (20:55):
"I think he will play both (Edgbaston and Lord's). They can't afford to go 0-2 down and there is no way he is saying I am not playing at Lord's. He will want to play both games. Let’s just say India win the next one and it’s 1-1, I still think they’ll want him to make the difference to get them ahead. Every overseas bowler wants to get on that board and he’ll be the same."
Bumrah bowled more than 43 overs in the opening Test as both teams' batters made merry on a flat Headingley wicket. While there has been a week between the first and second Tests, the third Test at Lord's begins just three days after Day 5 of the second Test.
"He's got to play Edgbaston" - Michael Atherton on Jasprit Bumrah
Former England captain Michael Atherton believes Team India are in a dilemma to decide on which of the next two Tests Jasprit Bumrah plays. Atherton feels the series scoreline would mean the veteran pacer must play the second Test, yet he would not want to miss the opportunity to play at Lord's, the venue for the third Test.
"They've got a decision to make over Bumrah first of all, because every player from overseas wants to play in the Lord's Test. He's got to play Edgbaston, he's got to play the next game. In cricketing terms, he should certainly play Edgbaston and I’ll say think carefully about Old Trafford because that’s the kind of ground where pace and reverse swing is very important but every cricketer wants to play at Lord’s and get on that honors board," said Atherton (20:46) (via the aforementioned source).
The Headingley defeat was India's seventh in their last nine Test matches, including the 0-3 home series whitewash to New Zealand and a 1-3 defeat to Australia in Australia.