Jasprit Bumrah (PTI Photo) NEW DELHI: As the dust settles on India’s T20 World Cup triumph, the BCCI national selectors, along with the team management, have begun planning plans for the World Test Championship (WTC) and ODI World Cup 2027. At the center 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 and his workload under the scanner — to play all nine WTC Tests in the coming season.Go Beyond The Boundary with our YouTube channel. SIGN UP NOW!India play a one-off Test against Afghanistan in Chandigarh from June 6, but that is not part of the WTC cycle. India are scheduled to play two Tests each in Sri Lanka and New Zealand this year before Australia arrive for the five-match Border-Gavaskar Trophy in January next year. Sources told TOI that reviving India’s chances in the current WTC cycle will be a priority this year, even as there have been rumors of an ODI World Cup. India is currently ranked 6th in the WTC table.
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‘Control your temptations’: Jasprit Bumrah reacts after stunning performance against South Africa in 1st Test “The effort is to keep Bumrah fit enough to play all the Tests. He is expected to play four Tests in Sri Lanka and New Zealand. The challenge will be to keep him fresh for the five Tests at home against Australia. The selectors will not mind resting him in some ODI series. He played T20 cricket after a two-year break in the Asia Cup last September and is still delivering,” sources told TOIBCCI. Last year, Bumrah made himself available for three of the five Tests in England. However, the board now want him to play if he is clinically fit. Bumrah played all four Tests at home after this series. He is expected to play a negligible number of T20Is as the next marquee T20I assignment is two years away.Bumrah will be a key figure in India’s conditions if India are to qualify for the WTC finals. India have failed to qualify since Gautam Gambhir took over as head coach. The team also whitewashed New Zealand and South Africa at home. The selectors said it is imperative that the first-choice Test players are available for Test cricket if they are fit. The Afghanistan Test call-up will be taken at the end of the IPL after studying the player’s workload.“The idea is to take the Tests seriously. The Afghanistan Test may be out of the WTC cycle, but there is nothing like match practice. The best players will be judged and called upon accordingly,” sources said.After being shut out by South Africa last season, India’s Test captain Shubman Gill has advocated a longer turnaround time from other formats to prepare for the Test series. When India last faced Afghanistan in a Test in 2018, all the top players played except Virat Kohli, who was nursing a back nipple. Focus on Padikkal, Jurel, Gaikwad in middle order TOI understands that Devdutt Padikkal, Dhruv Jurel and Ruturaj Gaikwad are considered as middle-order prospects. The team management feels that Jurel can be used as a pure batsman while Padikkal is seen as someone who can challenge Sai Sudharsan’s spot at No.3. The team management also feels that Gaikwad may face a turnaround in Indian conditions.
