Former Kolkata Knight Riders and India batter Manoj Tiwary slammed Jasprit Bumrah for picking and choosing games games that he plays for India ahead of the Asia Cup 2025. The 31-year-old Bumrah for the record played in only three out of the five Tests in the recent England series owing to workload management.
Jasprit Bumrah has struggled with injuries throughout his career, with the latest being a back injury he suffered at the start of the year in Sydney, Australia. The injury kept the ace pacer out of action for three months. Bumrah confirmed before the start of the England series about missing two out of the five Test matches. This move was met with massive criticism from several former players and experts and Manoj Tiwary was the latest to join that bandwagon.
Manoj Tiwary launches scathing attack on Jasprit Bumrah.Â
Speaking to Crictracker, Manoj Tiwary said: “If a player is not fit for a five-Test series, when you know beforehand, then obviously, you will not pick that individual. Why will you not pick that individual? Because no one is bigger than the game of cricket. And it should be told to everyone, irrespective of whether he’s Jasprit Bumrah, whether it is Virat Kohli or Rohit Sharma, or anyone in the world. No one is bigger than the game of cricket.”Â
He further added: “If the team management knows or the selector knows that he’s not going to survive for five Tests on a trot, he should not be picked.”Â
Jasprit Bumrah was impressive in the three Tests he played in as he picked up 14 wickets at an average of 26 which included two five-wicket hauls.
Manoj Tiwary believes Jasprit Bumrah should not have been picked in the first place.Â
Manoj Tiwary also believes that Jasprit Bumrah should not have been picked for the England series once he was to play in only three out of five Tests. Co-incidentally, India lost two out of the three matches that Bumrah played in and won both the games that he missed and opted out.
Mohammed Siraj stepped up big for the visitors, as he played all five Test matches and finished with 23 wickets, the highest in the series from both sides.
Speaking on the same platform, Manoj Tiwary said: “We would have understood if the backup was not there, the bench strength was not there, then obviously you want to take Jasprit Bumrah because you know there is no other bowlers who are ready to take over international cricket. But when you know you have a bench strength, when you have a pool of fast bowlers who are doing really well, then obviously he should not have been picked in the first place.”Â
Jasprit Bumrah has been included in India’s 15-member squad for the upcoming 2025 Asia Cup, starting on September 9th with India playing their first game on 10th September.
The Jasprit Bumrah has polarised opinions due to his workload management and many former players have been against it but some have even spoken in favour of Bumrah and supported his call to rest. This is an issue that is bound to polarise opinions. While Manoj Tiwary has his reasons behind saying what he has, but we got to remember the doctor’s warning on Bumrah’s back and Shane Bond saying one more injury and it could be the end of Bumrah.
India cannot afford to lose Bumrah the player as in white-ball cricket, he is a must and necessity. India can do well without him in Tests but he is a generational talent and we must not lose sight of that. People are entitled to their views, but sometimes a scathing attack like this seems a bit unfair. Let’s hope Bumrah does well in the Asia Cup for India.
Also Read: Asia Cup 2025: Ajit Agarkar Shares Insight on Jasprit Bumrah’s Workload Strategy