'Bumrah said he was tired and his body wasn't giving more': R Ashwin's warning that Gambhir, Gill must not ignore

Hindustan Times

17 hours ago

Ravichandran Ashwin may not be around to share his experience with the Indian team in England, but the former India off-spinner did spread his wisdom to his teammates all the way from Chennai. Ashwin, who announced his retirement from international cricket in December, issued a stern warning to the Indian team management, including decision-makers Gautam Gambhir and Shubman Gill, regarding Jasprit Bumrah, which, if ignored, can become catastrophic to India and their chances of winning the five-match series.
Without Ashwin and Mohammed Shami, Bumrah has the responsibility of spearheading India's fast-bowling attack. Given his history of back injuries, it's no secret that he won't be playing all five matches and that his workload will be managed better than before. Prior to the team's departure, head coach Gambhir reiterated the same but didn't reveal which matches Bumrah will miss, a sensible decision considering such calls should be taken only after carefully monitoring the body. Ashwin emphasised the same, but stressed the use of a phenomenon the team has surprisingly yet to adapt.
"We haven't really made use of sports science and technology when it comes to Bumrah. At the moment, it is all very subjective. In Australia also, it wasn't until Melbourne that Jassi said he was tired and his body wasn't giving more. Thereafter, he broke down in Sydney. There are some real lessons here. And that's what will define how you use him in England," Ashwin told RevSportz.
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"See, it is subjective to say he will play three Tests or four Tests. Why not two, and why not four? Now, we can measure everything, and then when you add to it how the player is feeling, you can come to a near-perfect assessment of where you stand with Jassi."
Bumrah was supposed to follow the same practice Down Under, too, pick and choose which five Tests to play. But such was the enormity of the Border-Gavaskar Trophy that India had no option but to keep Bumrah going. Eventually, the move backfired for India as Bumrah broke down in the fifth and final Test match at Sydney, ruling him out for three months. To ensure it doesn't happen again, Ashwin called for an intense blow-by-blow account of Bumrah's body through the series.
"Let me explain – you should measure his body parameters every day at training. Every single session should be monitored. And then, you should monitor him in matches as well. If you do it every day, you have clear markers how his body is, at what speed he is running in, and all that you need to know. Then, ask him how he is feeling and you will know clearly when to give him a break or when to slow down," Ashwin pointed out.
"For example, if you see his body parameters changing at the end of two Test matches, you know clearly that you need to be more careful. That's when you need to tell him or ask him if he is feeling anything. If he says no, you can continue, but you need to closely monitor things. Also, he knows that way that he needs to say it the moment he feels something wrong."
Bumrah finished the series with 32 wickets, but for what? He couldn't prevent a 1-3 defeat and ended up missing India's victorious Champions Trophy campaign. Ashwin reminds that had Bumrah remained fit, India could have defended the off 160-run target and levelled the series 2-2, but well… hindsight is always a good thing. Isn't it? India could find themselves in a familiar spot in the coming series against England, but cannot afford a repeat of Bumrah's SCG fate, says Ashwin.
"With sports science, all of this is possible. The truth is you should not base things on subjective assessment. Suppose he doesn't feel anything at the end of two Tests, would you still rest him? If he does feel something at the end of the Leeds Test, would you still want to play him at Edgbaston?
"These are critical calls for India, and could go on to define the series. Had Jassi been there in Sydney, India could have won that match. So how you manage him will have a huge bearing on the outcome of the contest."