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BCCI (Men's) Selection Committee Chairman Ajit Agarkar on Saturday said that the decision to exclude ace pacer Jasprit Bumrah from the upcoming T20I series against Ireland and England is focused on workload management and long-term fitness, especially for the ODIs and Tests.
Despite being rested for the upcoming T20I tours of Ireland (two matches) and England (five matches) as India prioritises ODI preparations ahead of the 2027 ODI World Cup, Bumrah has been included in a full-strength Indian squad for the men's cricket competition at the 2026 Asian Games. Notably, Bumrah is also not featuring in the ongoing India vs Afghanistan one-off Test match that began on June 6. Speaking at the squad announcement press conference on Saturday, BCCI chief selector Ajit Agarkar explained that Bumrah is extremely important across formats, especially in major tournaments like the ODI World Cup and the World Test Championship (WTC) cycle. He said the priority is to ensure Bumrah remains fit for Tests and ODIs by managing his workload in less critical series. "One-Day World Cup, obviously, like T20 World Cup, we know how important he is, plus the WTC cycle, we've still got a chance, if we play well enough over these next nine tests, this one is not part of WTC, the Afghanistan one. But if we can have Jasprit play majority of those games and still keep him fit and healthy, it's always the thing. There's a lot of T20 cricket; you can always bring him back. Asian Games, he will be there, so yeah, the main aim is to try and keep him fit for the Test and the ODI," Agarkar said. India will begin their Ireland-England white-ball campaign with a two-match T20I series against Ireland, with the first match scheduled for June 26 and the second on June 28. The team will then travel to England for a five-match T20I series, which gets underway on July 1. (ANI)
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