Harsha Bhogle Brutally Trolled For Defending Jasprit Bumrah Amid Backlash. But Why?
Harsha Bhogle questioned the incessant trolling of Jasprit Bumrah during the five-match Test series between India and England.
Harsha Bhogle, the voice of cricket, extended support to India's premier pacer Jasprit Bumrah who found himself caught in a social media storm of criticism for his absence from two out of five Tests in the recently concluded Anderson-Tendulkar Trophy in England. Even before the exciting Test series commenced, BCCI, along with captain Shubman Gill, Head Coach Gautam Gambhir, and Bumrah himself, had decided that the 31-year-old bowler would only feature in three Tests to manage his workload.
The backlash around Bumrah's absence only grew louder as the series progressed, and Bumrah was released from the squad ahead of the fifth and final Test at The Oval between India and England, when the visiting side was down 1-2. However, a subsequent report in TOI revealed that Bumrah had suffered a minor knee injury, keeping the NO. 1 ranked Test bowler away from action.
Bowls More Overs…
'Really?? Trolling Bumrah? Hope you aren't among those but If you are, fair to say you have no idea of what you have to endure to become a Bumrah. And you have no appreciation for one of India's greatest matchwinners who, as it turns out, bowls more overs than almost any other bowler, (sic)" Bhogle shared with his 9 million followers on the Elon Musk-owned social media website.
What seemed like a straightforward, no-nonsense remark to back the best bowler in the business turned into a social media circus soon after.
Fans Unhappy
The cricket commentator's seemingly harmless post defending his own did not go down well with social media commenters who asked Bhogle if Bumrah was immune to criticism.
'Hypocrisy at its peak You guys were the one to troll Virat kohli your best player. When you didn't find any flaws in his game you started trolling him for losing toss & Now Just because someone is raising question towards Bumrah's fitness & workload you have problem with that, (sic)" responded one user to Bhogle's post.
'No, we are not trolling – just raising questions about workload management. Is even that considered wrong?" wrote another to which Bhogle responded by saying, 'No, that is fine. But remember, each body is different and you can't have a one size fits all solution (sic)."
Kohli Fans Join
A section of X users and Kohli fans accused Bhogle of not supporting Kohli when the former India skipper was experiencing a lean patch in his Test career.
'Really love the way you're taking a stand for Bumrah here. But if I remember correctly, you never did this when Kohli was getting trolled from every side despite him being one of our biggest match-winner. Oh sorry, you were the one who fueled the hate train. Funny (sic)."
Another user, quoting Bhogle's post defending Bumrah, wrote: 'Hypocrisy at its peak You guys were the one to troll Virat kohli your best player. When you didn't find any flaws in his game you started trolling him for losing toss & Now Just because someone is raising question towards Bumrah's fitness & workload you have problem with that (sic)."
'Where was this statement from him when Kohli was getting dragged 24/7 inspite of being out biggest match winner? Oh wait, he was busy making excel sheets," chimed in a third user.
Others, however, backed Bhogle and suggested that the furious Kohli fan army take a chill pill.
Bumrah, in a heartfelt Instagram post, reflected on the series that produced several moments of brilliance on the cricket field between the two highly competitive nations and the 25 days of Test cricket that turned into an enthralling away series for India.
'We take back great memories from a highly competitive and enthralling test series! Looking forward to what's next," the bowler captioned his update.
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A post shared by jasprit bumrah (@jaspritb1)
His post raised eyebrows online when the cricket lovers and trolls wondered why Bumrah had made no mention of his teammate Mohammed Siraj who was instrumental in India drawing the dramatic series 2-2 against England. Siraj picked up a total of 23 wickets, 9 of which came in the final Test that helped India win the thrilling match by 6 runs, thus squaring the exceptional series.
Cut Him Some Slack
Former India cricketer Dinesh Karthik urged critics to cut Bumrah some slack, saying it wasn't his fault that India did not win when he played for the team.
'Now this stat of when he doesn't play, India win. It's not his mistake. He is so impactful that others pale in comparison at times, which is understandable. He is a world champion. It's not easy and sometimes I feel we have to cut him some slack as well," Karthik said while speaking to Cricbuzz.
Also Read: 'Cut Him Some Slack': Dinesh Karthik Hits Out At Jasprit Bumrah's Critics
In a Reddit video, Sachin Tendulkar highlighted Bumrah's 14 wickets in three Tests that he featured in.
'Bumrah started well, got five wickets in the first innings of the first Test. He did not play the second Test, but played in the third and the fourth. Again, in (one of) those two Tests, he got (a) five-wicket (haul)," Tendulkar said while speaking on Reddit.
Former Aussie legend Glenn McGrath said that Bumrah needed an off-season as his bowling action and workload had overwhelmed his physical well-being.
Below Par
Former India all-rounder rated Bumrah's contribution in the three Tests he featured in and rated him 6/10.
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'Bumrah will get six out of ten. Why? The reason is that when you are a senior player, there is a lot of responsibility on you to win matches. He played in three Tests, and India did not win any of them," Pathan said on his YouTube channel.
'There were moments, like when a sixth over was needed. I spoke about this during commentary as well. Joe Root had been dismissed by him 11 times, and in that Lord's Test, Bumrah bowled five overs. Just one more over, the sixth, could have pushed harder. I felt he held back a little there. There was also some pick-and-choose, which I have always been against, and that was visible too," he added.
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First Published:
August 08, 2025, 09:55 IST
News explainers Harsha Bhogle Brutally Trolled For Defending Jasprit Bumrah Amid Backlash. But Why?
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