Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammed Shami Likely to Play India vs Australia ODI & T20I Series on Rotational Basis to Manage Workload
With Ishant Sharma – who sustained a knee injury during the Dream11 Indian Premier League (IPL) 2020 – doubtful for the Test series, the Indian team management want Jasprit Bumrah and Mohammed Shami to be fresh for all the four Test matches. Hence, the two primary pacers are expected to play the three ODIs and as many T20Is on a rotational basis.
Indian speedsters Mohammed Shami and Jasprit Bumrah aren't likely to feature in all the matches of ODI & T20I series against Australia to manage the workload. With Ishant Sharma – who sustained a knee injury during the Dream11 Indian Premier League (IPL) 2020 – doubtful for the Test series, the Indian team management want Bumrah and Shami to be fresh for all the four Test matches. Hence, the two primary fast bowlers are expected to play the three ODIs and as many T20Is on a rotational basis. Although any official statement is yet to come, a BCCI source mentioned told PTI that Ishant Sharma's injury prompted Ravi Shastri and Bharat Arun to form a workload management plan for Bumrah and Shami. India vs Australia 2020–21: Ravi Shastri Shares Pictures With Hardik Pandya, Shikhar Dhawan.
Notably, Shami and Bumrah were chief architects of India's triumph in 2018/19 Test series against Australia. The former took 16 wickets in four matches while Bumrah was the highest wicket-taker in the series with 21 scalps. Riding on their vicious spells, India created history – registering their first Test series victory on Australian soli by 2-1. The team management indeed want the two talismanic bowlers to replicate their heroics. Hence, one might not see the duo joining forces in limited-over games. India Tour of Australia 2020-21 Schedule, Free PDF Download.
"If both (Bumrah and Shami) play the T20 Internationals (on December 4, 6 and 8), then they will have one warm-up match less which I don't think the team management will fancy at this moment," the source said to PTI. Notably, the Indian team will play a pink-ball warm-up game in Sydney from December 11-13 ahead of the Test series.
With the two primary bowlers not likely to participate in all white-ball games, the onus will be on other pacers to put their hands up. Navdeep Saini and Shardul Thakur are all but likely to play all three ODIs while Deepak Chahar and T Natarajan can handle the fast-bowling duties in the T20Is.
(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Nov 19, 2020 02:16 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).