There will be a leaning towards making Bumrah play in Manchester Test, says ten Doeschate

Beckenham, July 17 (IANS) Assistant coach Ryan ten Doeschate has indicated that there will be a preference for making fast-bowling spearhead Jasprit Bumrah play in the upcoming fourth Test against England, but a final call on this will be taken closer to game day in Manchester.

Ahead of the Test tour of England, chief selector Ajit Agarkar and head coach Gautam Gambhir had announced that Bumrah will only play three of the five games in the series as part of workload management.

That policy has meant that Bumrah played in Tests at Headingley and Lord’s, while being rested from the Edgbaston game. But with a week’s gap between third and fourth Tests, Bumrah might just play in the Test at Old Trafford, starting on July 23, as India aim to equalize the series scoreline after a 22-run loss at Lord’s.

“We'll make that call in Manchester still. We know we've got him for one of the last two Tests. I think it's pretty obvious the series is on the line now in Manchester, so there will be a leaning towards playing him. But again, we've got to look at all the factors.”

“How many days of cricket are we going to get up there? What do we feel is our best chance of winning that game? And then how that fits in together with the Oval and looking at the last two games holistically as part of the series,” said ten Doeschate in a press conference, on the sidelines of India’s practice session at Beckenham.

During the practice session, India had an injury scare as left-arm pacer Arshdeep Singh suffered a cut on his bowling hand while trying to stop a ball and was seen with a bandage on. “He tried to stop the ball off Sai and it's just a cut on his hand, so we have to see how bad the cut is. Obviously the medical team have taken him off to see a doctor and obviously if he needs stitches or doesn't need stitches, that's going to be important to our planning for the next few days,” added ten Doeschate.

Mohammed Siraj is the leading wicket-taker in the series with 13 scalps, and has bowled a whopping 109 overs, which brings his workload management into question. Ten Doeschate conceded that managing Siraj is on the team think tank’s mind and that they are working hard to ensure the pacer is fresh to fire in Manchester.

“First thing I'll say is it hasn't felt like a long tour. It's been exciting from day one, like you get up every morning and you can't wait for what the next day brings. Obviously these guys are working so hard, especially the guys who are new to the squad, so it's been a very refreshing tour in that sense. Let's first start with Siraj before we talk about Bumrah.”

“I think we take for granted how lucky we are to have someone like that. I know he doesn't always have the returns that you expect from a fast bowler, but in terms of heart, he's like a lion and what he brings to this bowling attack, whenever he does have the ball in hand you always feel like something's going to happen.”

“He's not someone who's going to shy away from workload, so it makes it even more important for us to manage his workload and make sure that he's at least fit to give his best. Again, we'll take a call on the combination we play, particularly given the Arshdeep situation as well, we'll make that call closer to Manchester,” he elaborated.

England skipper Ben Stokes has been the second busiest bowler in the series after Siraj with 105 overs under his belt, and ten Doeschate believes his workload with the Indian bowling counterparts can’t be compared.

“Look, that was super impressive for Ben to come out on their last day and bowl the amount of overs he did with the intensity he did, and obviously bats and fields as well. We're not yet there to compare our bowlers to individuals from other teams. We have our own strengths. We know what particularly Jasprit does in shorter spells, which he prefers bowling in.”

“When the time's right, and what I alluded to earlier about Siraj, some bowlers are like that. You get the best out of them in their seventh, eighth and ninth overs, but not everyone has to be the same as that. We feel that in consultation with Jasprit, it is decided how we use him in, and which is the best way for the team.”

The practice session in Beckenham also saw bowling coach Morne Morkel roll his arm over for some time and ten Doeschate said it was more about giving variety to the practising batters. “It's not a sort of direct sort of practice machine for Jofra, I'm assuming you're alluding to. But obviously Arsh going away there after he cut his hand and Akash not bowling today, sometimes we run a bit thin.”

“If we think the practice is good, someone rolling off 20 yards and a bit taller and shaping the new ball, it is good practice for the batters. They obviously like competing against Moune as well. But it's mainly about getting the batters the best practice for the Test match.”

--IANS

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