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Jasprit Bumrah revealed he declined the Test captaincy for the England series, citing workload and injury concerns after consulting BCCI and doctors. He prioritised team stability, saying it wouldn’t be fair to lead without playing all five Tests.
Team India lead pacer Jasprit Bumrah broke his silence on refusing to take up captaincy duties for the upcoming Test series against England, starting on June 20. In May, the BCCI chief selector Ajit Agarkar officially announced Shubman Gill as India’s new Test captain, succeeding Rohit Sharma, who retired from the format ahead of the Test tour of England.
Though Shubman Gill emerged as the front-runner to lead the side, he was in contention with Jasprit Bumrah, Rishabh Pant, and KL Rahul. It was reported that Bumrah withdrew from the captaincy race due to workload management and injury concerns, while KL Rahul was not considered a long-term option due to his age and frequent injuries. And, Rishabh Pant was named vice-captain of Team India for the England Test series.
Many experts and former cricketers backed Jasprit Bumrah to lead Team India in Tests due to his seniority and successfully leading the team in the Perth Test against Australia in November last year. However, the BCCI went with Shubman Gill as India’s new Test captain.
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Jasprit Bumrah declines BCCI offer
Ahead of India’s Test series against England, Jasprit Bumrah confirmed that he had refused to take up captaincy in the longest format. Speaking to Dinesh Karthik on Sky Sports, the 31-year-old revealed that he spoke to the BCCI before the Test retirements of Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma and discussed his workload management, while informing his decision of not leading Team India in Tests after speaking with surgeons.
The Indian pacer confirmed that he would not be playing all five Tests of the upcoming series against England.
“Before Rohit and Virat retired during the IPL, I had spoken to the BCCI about my workloads 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.” Bumrah said.
“I did speak to him, and then we came to the conclusion that I have to be a little smarter. So then 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 all the Test matches in a five-test match series,"
Bumrah sustained a back injury in the Sydney Test against Australia and was sidelined for three months, missing India’s title-winning campaign at the Champions Trophy this year, before making a comeback in the IPL 2025.
The same back issue sidelined him for almost a year, missing the T20 World Cup 2022, the World Test Championship 2023 Final, and the IPL 2023.
Two captains for a series is not ideal
Jasprit Bumrah stated that BCCI was looking at him for Test captaincy, but declined it as it does not make sense to have two captains for a Test series against England.
“Yes, the BCCI was looking at me for leadership. But then I had to say, no, that it's not fair for the team as well, that, you know, a five-Test match series, three matches, somebody else is leading, two matches, somebody else is leading,” the 31-year-old said.
“It's not fair to the team. And I always wanted to put the team first," he added.
Jasprit Bumrah first led Team India in the rescheduled fifth Test against England at Edgbaston in 2022, but the visitors lost the match as England chased down a record target, denying India’s Test series victory. His first success as a captain came when he led India to a win in the Perth opener, defeating Australia by 295 runs.
Bumrah is expected to remain part of the leadership group, given his experience and tactical acumen, especially in overseas Test conditions, but would not play all five Tests of the series.
