Jasprit Bumrah has disclosed that he declined the chance to lead India in Test cricket because he was worried about managing his workload. He had made this decision known to the BCCI at the time.
Shubman Gill was selected as India’s new Test captain for the forthcoming five-match series against England after Rohit Sharma announced his retirement from Test cricket in May. But Bumrah made it clear that his decision to withdraw from leadership talks was motivated only by pragmatic factors and not by controversy.
“There’s no fancy stories to it [captaincy],” Bumrah said in an interview with Dinesh Karthik for Sky Sports. “There is no controversy or there’s no headlining statements that I was sacked or I was not looked after. Before Rohit (Sharma) and Virat (Kohli) retired during the IPL, I had spoken to the BCCI about my workload going forward in a five Test-match series. I’ve spoken to the people who have managed my back. I’ve spoken to the surgeon as well, who’s always spoken to me about how smart you have to be about the workloads.”
He continued, “I did speak to him and then we came to a conclusion that I have to be a little more smart. 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 [it my] all Test matches coming a five Test-match series. So then, yes, the BCCI was looking at me as a leader. But then I had to say no. It’s not fair for the team as well that in a five Test-match series, someone is leading in three matches and someone else in two matches. It’s not fair on the team and I always wanted to put the team first.”
During the last Border-Gavaskar Test in Sydney earlier this year, Bumrah experienced what were initially believed to be back spasms. He missed the Champions Trophy and the start of the 2025 Indian Premier League after it was determined that the injury was caused by stress. Since then, Bumrah has managed his fitness with caution since he knows that getting hurt again in the same place could endanger his career.
“[We will] plan on the go,” Bumrah said when asked about his availability across the five Tests. “Three Test matches is what I’m looking at. Obviously that number is not decided. First [Test] is definitely on, that is going to happen. The rest we’ll see how things are, what is the workload, what are the scenarios going on. Three Test matches is what I can manage at this moment. And I don’t want to be in a desperate scenario.
“I cannot be dictating if I’d have been the captain that, ‘okay, I’ll only play three Test matches’. That doesn’t send a good message to the team as well. All of these things in mind, trying to give my best as a player and trying to contribute to the best of my capacity. Hopefully in the games that I play, I’ll give it my absolute best.”
The 31-year-old Bumrah made a comeback in the 2025 Indian Premier League, playing a key role for the Mumbai Indians (MI) and claiming 18 wickets in 12 games at an average of 17.55 and an economy of 6.67. After a difficult start, MI advanced to the knockout stages, largely thanks to Bumrah’s form.
Now preparing for the England series, Bumrah is confident about his physical condition. “The body is feeling good. All good, no issues,” he said. “I played an IPL, a hectic IPL. I always try my best to look after my body and do everything that is there in my power. The weather is good. It was hot in India. Now we are experiencing a different weather.”
He emphasized the importance of carefully managing his buildup to the series: “So, it is all about workload. You don’t want to have a big spike,” Bumrah explained. “So even during the IPL, we had spoken to the trainers and physios, what do we have to do, how do we slowly increase our weekly workload? We were doing that in the IPL. We don’t just bowl four overs. We bowl six to eight overs. Then we have a weekly load and warm-ups. Even before the game, we try and squeeze in those overs.
“So eventually by the time we reach here, we are at a decent level. From here, we still have some time, we keep building it up. So, by the time the Test matches come, you’re physically ready and the spike is not too much and the body is used to bowling a lot more overs.”
There are still questions about Bumrah’s ability to handle the same demanding workloads as he did in the past, such as when he bowled 152.1 overs in nine innings in Australia during the Border-Gavaskar Trophy, taking 32 wickets at an average of 13.06.
“It all depends,” Bumrah said. “Even in Australia, I was the captain in the first game and a little bit in the last game. But for me, it doesn’t go that this is the plan going forward. Obviously, in Australia, there were certain scenarios that we had to push extra because the series was on the line.
“I was doing really well. And you wanted to be in a scenario where you wanted to give yourself the best chance and the team the best chance because you would have won that series. WTC [final] was possible.
“Having said that, whenever you play for India, you never think of, ‘I’m not going to do this. I’m not going to do that, I’m going to protect myself.’ But going further, you have to be smart. Sometimes the workload goes really high. There’s less time between Test matches. It takes a lot out of a fast bowler. So, coming to this series, I’ve prepared really well. But I have to be smart as well because I’m not becoming younger by the day.”
