Cheteshwar Pujara and Jasprit Bumrah. (Source – Getty Images/Star Sports)
With Rohit Sharma having to attend to his wife, Ritika Sajdeh, for the birth of their second child, Jasprit Bumrah has been called upon to lead the side for the first Test of the Border-Gavaskar Trophy. There is absolutely no doubt when it comes to Bumrah’s prowess as a bowler across formats. However, his lack of experience while leading any side, let alone India, has prompted for a wave of uncertainty to emerge as far as the effectiveness of his tactics are concerned.
Indian cricketer, Cheteshwar Pujara, in a recent discussion, discussed how Bumrah’s overall awareness and shrewd nature while bowling will have a vital impact on his captaincy.
“He’s a quality player. Bumrah is someone who is very smart. As a bowler, you need to know your strengths and strategies really, really well. Whenever he’s running in, he’s always looking to pick wickets. When you want to pick wickets as a bowler, you need to think about the game. You need to think about how you can get a batter out, what the options are, and what plans you need to set to get the batter out. That is something which will help him as a captain. When you take the entire team as a captain, you need to know what strategy to take against each batter,” shared Pujara on Star Sports.
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If someone isn’t performing well, he’ll always be there to support them: Pujara
Pujara also highlighted Bumrah’s understanding nature as being one of the other prominent factors which will help him lead the side seamlessly. However, Pujara concluded by advising Bumrah to trust his gut while making any sort of decision.
“On the field, you need to know how many overs to bowl or when to rotate your bowlers. Bumrah understands that. He’s also very supportive of all the players. He understands what is required of a particular player and won’t put too much pressure on anyone. If someone isn’t performing well, he’ll always be there to support them. The one thing I would say is that when he’s captaining, he has to think for himself. There will be many inputs, but as captain, the final decision should always be his call,” added Pujara.
A lot of expectations have been placed on Bumrah & Co. to deliver the goods, especially after the battering at the hands of New Zealand. A lot banks on the first Test, as it will help set the tone for India. The Indian cricket fraternity will be hoping for Bumrah to come good as a bowler and captain, in what will be only his second Test as India’s skipper.