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India star pacer Jasprit Bumrah has explained the reason behind not captaining the Indian team in the five-match Test series against England.
While speaking during a recent interview, Bumrah disclosed that the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) had approached him for the captaincy role.
“Before Rohit and Virat retired during the IPL, I had spoken to the BCCI about my workloads going forward in a five-test match series,’ he said.
“I’ve spoken to the people who have managed my back. I’ve talked to the surgeon as well, who’s always spoken to me about how smart you have to be about the workloads, Bumrah told Dinesh Karthik during the interview on Sky Sports.
The right-arm pacer deemed workload management as a key reason for not opting to captain Team India in the whites.
‘So I did speak to him, and then we came to the conclusion that I have to be a little smarter. So then I called the BCCI and said I don’t want to be looked at in a leadership role because I won’t be able to give all the Test matches in a five-test match series,” Bumrah added.
Jasprit Bumrah also emphasised a team-first approach, noting that it was not fair to lead in only two Test matches.
“Yes, the BCCI was looking at me for leadership. But then I had to say, no, that it’s not fair for the team as well, that, you know, a five-Test match series, three matches, somebody else is leading, two matches, somebody else is leading. It’s not fair to the team. And I always wanted to put the team first,” he concluded.
For the unversed, following the retirement of Rohit Sharma, Shubman Gill was handed the reins of the Indian team in the longest format with the upcoming series as his major assignment.
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