Karthik defends Bumrah amid criticism; Irfan questions selective approach

Despite India’s thrilling series-levelling victory in the fifth and final Test against England, Jasprit Bumrah has come under scrutiny for missing the Oval fixture. Officially left out due to workload management, speculation over the pacer’s absence intensified, especially with some critics also pointing out that India won the matches that Bumrah didn’t play in the tour.

Bumrah featured in only three of the five Tests during the England series. Although the star pacer returned with 14 wickets, including a couple of five-wicket hauls, his effort didn’t help India win any Test on the tour. In fact, in his absence, India won the matches in Edgbaston and Oval.

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However, former India wicket keeper Dinesh Karthik strongly defended Bumrah, emphasising his value to the team. “You have to look at it from Jasprit Bumrah’s point of view. I think that these kinds of wins, the way the series has panned out, the way the young team has fought will actually help him in his career. I believe Jasprit Bumrah will be very proud of this young bowling attack and knowing him, he is not someone who shies away from pressure, big matches,” he was quoted as saying by cricbuzz.

“Boss, he is in the ground, as a captain, any big moment, you go to Jasprit Bumrah, you want a wicket, go to Jasprit Bumrah, you want a 5-an over in a T20 match, you go to Jasprit Bumrah. If you are bowling with a bad, old ball which is 25 overs old in a ODI and want a wicket, go to Jasprit Bumrah. That is the name he has earned and he rightly deserves to be called that,” Karthik added.

He further addressed the criticism surrounding India’s wins in Bumrah’s absence. “Now, when he doesn’t play, India does not 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. When he finishes cricket, he will be spoken in the same parlance as Glenn McGrath, Shane Warne, Dale Steyn,” the former India stumper said.

“And I hope he will have a longer career knowing that I can pick and choose matches when I feel I am ready because there is no more pressure that I am the only one and at every match, I have to play. And at times, it’s unfair. It’s a body, he knows what he has gone through. 2 back injuries, one nasty ACL he had in 2014. It’s not easy and sometimes I feel we have to cut him some slack as well,” he added.

Ahead of the series, Bumrah had spoken about his focus on workload management to stay injury-free. After making a strong comeback midway through IPL 2025 following a back injury post the Border-Gavaskar Trophy, the fast bowler has been cautious with his playing schedule.

Irfan questions Bumrah’s ‘pick and choose’ approach

Unlike Karthik, former India seam-bowling all-rounder Irfan Pathan isn’t a big fan of Bumrah’s pick-and-choose approach. He questioned the team management for being overly careful with his workload.

“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’ve always been against, and that was visible too,” Pathan said on his YouTube channel.

He asserted that Bumrah did perform in the three matches he played, but stated that he still didn’t live up to the expectations of being the number-one ranked bowler. “To be fair, whenever he played, he did perform. He took a five-wicket haul and got his name on the Lord’s honours board. But when you are the number one bowler, there’s an expectation of number one-level performance, and I felt he didn’t quite live up to that,” he said.

Rating Bumrah’s performance on the tour, Pathan did not hold back and said the 31-year-old would receive only six out of 10. “Bumrah will get six out of ten. Why? The reason is that when you’re a senior player, there is a lot of responsibility on you to win matches. He played in three Tests, and India didn’t win any of them,” he said.