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In a recent episode for Cricbuzz, Dinesh Karthik shared his thoughts on prospects of Jasprit Bumrah becoming India's future captain. While Bumrah has led India in the past, he is currently not considered a front-runner for the role.
Dinesh Karthik on Jasprit Bumrah as future India captain
The idea of a fast bowler serving as captain is not common in Indian cricket. Pat Cummins has successfully taken on this responsibility for Australia, but a similar scenario has yet to unfold in India. Bumrah's leadership qualities have been praised by many cricket experts. However, his workload management as a fast bowler raises questions about his suitability to lead India across all formats.
Dinesh Karthik expressed concerns about Bumrah's workload as a fast bowler when discussing his potential as a captain across formats for India.
“Everything right ... He is calm cool, good maturity but he is a fast bowler so how can we play him for all three formats that is the biggest question the selectors would have had,” Karthik said.
"For a fast bowler like Bumrah, his fitness needs to be monitored and he needs to be protected as a player and only made to play in important matches, I keep saying this about Bumrah, he is like a Kohinoor diamond, we got to protect him, take care of him, make sure that he lasts as long as possible because whenever Bumrah plays in any format he makes an impact and that's what we want," Karthik further added.
Karthik warns against burdening Bumrah with captaincy
Dinesh Karthik cautioned that placing the burden of captaincy on Bumrah could increase his risk of injury, which would be a significant problem for the Indian team. The pacer's last appearance for India was in the ICC T20 World Cup, where he was named Player of the Series for his outstanding performance, taking 15 wickets in 8 matches at an average of 8.27. His match-winning spells against Pakistan and South Africa in the final showcased his exceptional skills.
While there has been speculation about Bumrah as a potential captaincy candidate, he has remained open to the possibility. In fact, he chose himself as his favorite captain, acknowledging his leadership experience in leading India in a few games, surpassing names like MS Dhoni, Virat Kohli, and Rohit Sharma.
"See, my favourite captain is me because I have captained a few games. Obviously, there are great captains but I would take my name that I am my favourite captain," Bumrah had earlier told The Indian Express when asked to pick the greatest Indian captain.
Bumrah has captained India in three matches: a Test against England and two T20Is against Ireland. His captaincy debut came in Birmingham in 2022 when captain Rohit Sharma was sidelined due to Covid-19. According to recent reports in the Indian Express, Bumrah is poised to make a comeback in the Test series against Bangladesh. He may feature in one of the two Test matches against Bangladesh and in two out of the three matches in the subsequent New Zealand Test series. Bumrah is a crucial player for India's chances in the upcoming Australia tour, with the first Test set to begin on November 22 in Perth.
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