Home
Indian skipper Rohit Sharma on the eve of first Test of the three-Test series against New Zealand said that pace-bowling spearhead Jasprit Bumrah has always been part of the leadership group. Rohit responded to rumours of him skipping the first Test of the Border-Gavaskar Trophy at Perth Stadium and Bumrah leading the side in his absence.
Rohit was without a deputy in the two-Test series against Bangladesh. Naming Bumrah as vice-captain again may be in indication that he will lead the side if Rohit is unavailable for the first Test in Perth next month.
“Look, Bumrah has played a lot of cricket. I've played a lot of cricket with him. He understands the game pretty well. He's got a good head on his shoulder. When you talk to him, he understands the game. When you are in a situation where you need a leader to step up, I think Bumrah will be one of them,” Rohit said in the pre-match press conference at M.Chinnaswamy Stadium, Bengaluru.
Bumrah’s captaincy record
Bumrah made his Test captaincy debut in 2022 against England as Rohit was ruled out after testing positive for Covid-19. India lost the rescheduled Test and the series ended in a 2-2 draw. He led India in the T20I series last year. India won two T20Is against Ireland under his captaincy.
“Tactically, I can't say much because he has not captained much. He was captain in one Test match and a couple of T20s, I guess,” Rohit added.
Rohit praises Bumrah’s leadership
Rohit praised Bumrah for helping new bowlers coming into the side. He feels it is the right decision to name him as vice-captain.
“He understands what is required. When you are in a situation where you need a leader to step up, I think Bumrah will be one of them. So, over the past, he's always been in our leadership group,” said the 37-year-old.
“Whether it is speaking to the bowlers who have just come into the squad, whether it is getting internally with the team to discuss about how to move forward as a team, he's always been part of that leadership group.
“So, it's probably the right thing to just have him around and speak to the bowlers and internally discuss how to take the team forward,” the opener further added.
