Commentators, former cricketers, and the public have all come at Jasprit Bumrah. The decision to skip two matches in England due to workload management irked many. Those educated on the topic didn’t criticise Bumrah, the Indian management, or the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI).
The man who perhaps understands Bumrah’s body more than Soham Desai. As someone who worked as Team India’s strength and conditioning (S&C) coach from November 2021 to May 2025, Soham knows why Bumrah couldn’t play all of the Test matches.
Preparing Siraj for England
Speaking with Ravichandran Ashwin, the S&C coach talked about how Mohammed Siraj was informed about preparing for the England Test series in February. His body was built from that moment forward to take the stress of playing 5 Tests. The Siraj of old wouldn’t have been able to do that, but his capacity was increased in the months prior.
“Siraj played 5 Test matches (in England). The plan didn’t come about the moment he landed in London. When he wasn’t picked for India’s squad for the Champions Trophy, there was a conversation with him. It was told to him, you might feel at the moment that it’s a big setback, but when you play in England, you’ll remember that if we hadn’t built your capacity then, you wouldn’t have been able to play 5 Test matches,” Soham said on Ash ki Baat.
Bumrah’s case different
The coach emphasised the point that those who think that Bumrah doesn’t work hard are wrong, but they are entirely different athletes. At this point, everyone realises that Bumrah’s action causes a heavy load in his body. Therefore, one can’t compare them. Secondly, Bumrah was injured from January to March. During that time, Siraj was resting and working on his workload.
“Likewise, with Bumrah, it’s the same thing. It’s not like he’s not working hard now. But his case is different. I’m talking about Bumrah because people will say, ‘Siraj has been working hard for so long; he played 5 matches, so why didn’t Bumrah? He could have played as well.’ That’s why I’m saying that Bumrah’s case is entirely different.”
“When a programme is made, it’s not like we’ll have a net session tomorrow and a match day after tomorrow. We have to take a 360-degree view. Take into account what has happened in the last 3 weeks and what we have in place for the next 3. Where’s that player’s level right now? And that’s how the plan is made,” Soham added.
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