Jofra walks in even as Bumrah thinks about a rest

Hindustan Times

4 hours ago

Mumbai: Three years ago in the IPL, it came ever so close for Jasprit Bumrah and Jofra Archer to be paired together by Mumbai Indians as the most attractive fast bowling tag team to watch; most feared, if you were an opposing batter. As fate would have it, the pairing never came to pass. Blame it on their injury-prone bodies. Pacer Jofra Archer returns to the England Test squad after an absence of over four years. (AFP)
With England naming Archer in their squad for the second Test at Edgbaston on Thursday, but Bumrah likely to rest, there is a strong possibility that two premier pacers might just give each other the miss again.But the hope is that it will happen at some point.
With the Indian batting side lacking some star power, the Boom and Jofra show could further spice up the five-Test series that got off to a spectacular start with the hosts taking the lead through a fast-paced fourth innings run-chase on the fifth day at Leeds.
Archer and Bumrah have played some IPL cricket in opposing jerseys but the two have faced off only twice before in Test cricket. That was back in 2021 in the spin friendly conditions of Chennai and Ahmedabad.
To see the two pacers, both capable of extracting steep bounce or delivering toe-crushing yorkers from misleading short run ups, can be an uplifting experience. Just to see them go all out in front of packed houses in England could infuse fresh life into a format that needs all the help it can get.
For the two proud bowlers, it's an opportunity to showcase their wider range of skills. Both are familiar with the quirks of the Dukes ball – more seam than swing to begin with, followed by a window to move it in the air until the ball goes soft, the art of extracting movement with the changing weather patterns. Archer's inclusion will certainly test the Indian batting more, but it may also get Bumrah's competitive juices flowing, energizing him further.
Bumrah may rest in Edgbaston
However, fans may have to wait a little longer for the duo's much-awaited confrontation, till at least the third Test at Lord's. Unless the Indian team management is selling everyone a dummy, the pre-series plan, one understands, was for Bumrah to play alternate Test matches.
The Indian speedster who dropped out of the captainship race well before the series to manage his workload is known to have had discussions with the team management for him to play at Lord's. It's unlikely, in any case, that Bumrah would play both the second and third Test with limited turnaround time. Besides, the Indian think tank may want Bumrah's experience to deal with the pronounced slope at Lord's.
While Bumrah is having to pick and choose matches after his latest round of back trouble during the Sydney Test in January, he's still risen to become the best fast bowler of his time.
Archer's troubles with injuries - some freak, others more serious - have meant his Test career has been limited to 13 matches over six years. He's had a back stress fracture, a troubling elbow issue, and more recently a cut with a kitchen knife to go with a previous glass cut from a broken fish tank.
'I'm glad to just finish a day of four-day cricket,' he told Sussex Cricket last Sunday when he turned up for the county to trial his red ball workload. 'Last time I played (2021), I just made it to tea, so I'm glad to go all the way.
'When the scoreboard got to 50 overs, I was, like, 'Jesus, time to come off now! But it wasn't too bad. Doing it session-by-session was okay.'
Experts like former England captain Michael Vaughan have therefore cautioned that Archer should play another county match to be sure he can cope with the intensity of Test cricket on return.
Bowling heft
Both Archer and Bumrah's presence gives their respective bowling attacks much respectability. Even the home side's pacers were not all that threatening in the series opener at Leeds with Ben Stokes the pick of the lot, through his short bursts.
Chris Woakes got only one wicket, Josh Tongue mostly accounted for Indian tailenders by bowling straight and Brydon Carse didn't look particularly threatening on the batting friendly surface. If this continues to be England's template to lay India low with pitches lacking life, they could do with Archer's inspired spells.
Bumrah was India's best bowler on show in the first innings at Leeds. He had a rare wicket-less outing in the second innings but still showed the bowling discipline that was clearly lacking in the rest of India's pacers. When Bumrah is playing, India seems to come into the contest. Having the wood over Joe Root, throwing punches against their prolific openers Zak Crawley and Ben Duckett are reasons enough to challenge the home side.
In the two Test matches Bumrah would miss in the series, India would have to identify alternatives. Whether they seek Akash Deep's control or Arshdeep Singh's different angle, it's most likely they will introduce Kuldeep Yadav's mystery to give England something to think about.