India vs England: Mumbai Gambhir Plans Bumrah Gamble Ahead of Must‑Win Manchester Test
by Geoffrey Ejiga | by Cydias Aujard
India Could Risk Playing Bumrah
Right at the start of the series, the coach of Team India revealed that Bumrah might only play three matches due to a back injury that has hampered his fitness. His struggles with fitness were evident as India lost both the first and third tests against England despite being favoured by betting sites.
The perilous decision ahead of Coach Mumbai now is whether to use the 31-year-old Bumrah, a move that could rule him out of the fifth test, which will likely be the series decider.
Team India has struggled with injuries, a situation that has been acknowledged by the team’s skipper, Shubman Gill.
Reflecting on the team’s injury problems, the captain said, “It's never easy when there are a few injuries in the squad. Nitish Kumar Reddy is going to miss out on the series.
Akash Deep is also unavailable for the next match, so is Arshdeep, but we have enough good players in the team to firstly, pick 20 wickets, that's been the most challenging part of the series.
It is not ideal to have different bowlers, but I was prepared."
England is “One-Step” Closer to Winning the Series
Team England struggles with a fragile top order. Yet, victory at Old Trafford will bring them very close to winning the series. At Lords, Zak Crawley only scored 18 and 22. Ollie Pople reached 44 in the first innings. However, he managed only four in the second.
Many have called for changes at the top of England’s line following Zak Crawley’s struggle with inconsistency. His career, filled with ups and downs, has led to discontent among Team India supporters.
Still, Team India is backing Crawley and Duckett. Even the Team’s captain has praised the duo, saying, "They complement each other. Left-hand, right-hand. One is a giant, one is not. It is very hard for bowlers to settle in.”
All Eyes on Jadeja Vs Stokes at Old Trafford
The game at Lord’s saw England’s Stokes take up the mantle, scoring 77 runs in two innings. He also took five wickets while producing a beautiful run out of Rishabh Pant. Interestingly, Team India’s Jadeja almost produced a match-winning innings.
Now, everyone will be watching to see if both players can put up an excellent performance at Old Trafford. Stokes, 34, has been plagued by injury spells over the past six years, meaning his game at Lord’s was the most he had bowled in a long time.
After an incredible performance, England's batsman was full of praise for the 34-year-old, saying, "It was an incredible effort to be able to do that, but that's just how he's built, I guess. He's just desperate to be the man and make things happen."
As for Team India, Jadeja will likely bear the weight of the team's expectations as the 36-year-old’s 61 out of 181 balls brought the tourists very close to their target run of 193. In the first innings, he scored 72, making 89 and 69 in the second test.
Comments from India’s batting coach already show the growing expectations for Jadeja. When asked about the 36-year-old, Sitanshu Kotak said:
"I always felt he (Jadeja) has the ability to take pressure. With so much experience, he normally comes with something that the team needs in any challenging conditions. Really, really valuable to the team."
