Virat Kohli seems to have assumed leadership of the team.
On the second day of the New Year’s Test in Sydney, India skipper Jasprit Bumrah exited the field after lunch after delivering just one over, raising concerns about an injury. He was spotted exiting the dressing room with the team doctor and a security guard just after 2:00 PM local time, having taken off his Test whites.
Bumrah’s workload throughout this tour has raised concerns. In nine innings, he has bowled 152.1 overs and taken 32 wickets at a rate of 13.06. On a tour of Australia, he broke the record held by Bishan Bedi for the most wickets taken by an Indian bowler and was moving up the all-time list.
Three of the final five overs of the morning session had been spent off the field by Bumrah. After lunch, he returned to the field to bowl for India for the final two overs. His first ball was successful in beating Alex Carey’s bat, but his speed was only in the early 120s to early 130s (kph). After bowling that over, Bumrah departed the field right away, and it wasn’t until footage of him driving away from the SCG was on the broadcast that he was spotted.
Rohit Sharma had expressed concern about overbowling him at the conclusion of the Melbourne Test, where he bowled 52 overs, his highest total in a Test match.
Since Rohit chose to step down from the final Test match due to his poor form, Bumrah took over as the team’s captain. India does not have a designated vice-captain. During the mid-session of the second day, it seemed as if Virat Kohli had assumed leadership of the squad. For India to keep the Border-Gavaskar Trophy, they must win the Sydney Test.
“If somebody is in such a great form, you want to try and maximise that form how much ever you can,” Rohit had stated. We’ve been attempting to accomplish that with Bumrah.
However, there comes a moment when you have to take a step back and allow him a little more breathing room. Thus, we have exercised extreme caution.
“I’ve exercised extreme caution. I discuss his feelings and other things with him. So, yes. Those objects need to be handled with caution. And on the field, I’m attempting to accomplish that.”
In 2022, Bumrah had already missed a year of action due to a stress fracture on his back.
