BCCI pushes for Jasprit Bumrah to play entire WTC cycle
Following their T20 World Cup win, selectors are prioritising the World Test Championship and 2027 ODI World Cup, focusing on managing Jasprit Bumrah's workload. Bumrah is expected to play all nine upcoming WTC Tests, with potential rest from ODIs. Middle-order prospects like Padikkal, Jurel, and Gaikwad are also being considered.
NEW DELHI: As the dust settles on India’s T20 World Cup triumph, BCCI’s national selectors, in conjunction with the team management, have started charting plans for the World Test Championship (WTC) and the 2027 ODI World Cup. At the centre of the plans is the vexing issue of how to manage superstar pacer Jasprit Bumrah’s workload. The BCCI, TOI understands, wants Bumrah — whose unique action puts extra stress on his 32-year-old body, putting his workload under scanner — to play all nine WTC Tests in the coming season.
Go Beyond The Boundary with our YouTube channel. SUBSCRIBE NOW! India play a one-off Test against Afghanistan in Chandigarh from June 6 but that is not a part of the WTC cycle.
India are due to play two Tests each in Sri Lanka and New Zealand this year before Australia come for a five-match Border-Gavaskar Trophy in Jan next year. Sources told TOI that reviving India’s chances in the current WTC cycle will be the priority this year even as the buzz is about the ODI World Cup. India are currently placed at No.
6 in the WTC table. “The attempt is to keep Bumrah fit enough to play all Tests. He is expected to play the four Tests in Sri Lanka and New Zealand.