Mumbai, Aug 19: Former India fast bowler Chetan Sharma has defended Jasprit Bumrah’s workload management amid widespread criticism of the speedster, saying that the bowlers should listen to their physios. Bumrah only played three out of the five matches in the recent Test series against England as the management decided to give him optimum rest during the series.
However, after the speedster didn’t feature in the final Test at the Oval with India being 1-2 behind, Bumrah received backlash from both fans and pundits. Recently, Chetan Sharma jumped to Bumrah’s defence, mentioning that the players should go by their physio’s words as they’re the best judges.
If the medical team advises, if the doctor tells me that I have to take antibiotics, then I have to consume them. If our physios is telling a player to manage workload, I think we should listen to them because they are the better judges,” Sharma said.
Furthermore, Sharma also backed India to do well in the Asia Cup 2025 and praised the team for their recent performances in England.
“I know that whoever is selected will be the best for the country. And the kind of cricket we are playing right now, I’m really proud with the way India played in England. And I’m very confident that we are definitely going to win the Asia Cup (to be played in T20 format) because soon after that we are playing the T20 World Cup (in 2026) in India,” he added.
Asia Cup 2025 is all set to begin from September 9 with the opening game scheduled to be held between Afghanistan and Hong Kong in Abu Dhabi. On the other hand, India will begin their campaign against the United Arab Emirates (UAE) in on September 10 in Dubai. The Suryakumar Yadav-led side will next take on arch-rivals Pakistan on September 14.
It remains to be seen whether the Men in Blue will go ahead with the fixture after the recent tumultuous relations between the two countries in the aftermath of the Pahalgam Terror attack. Meanwhile, the team selection for the Asia Cup is scheduled to be held on Tuesday, August 19.