Former England batter Owais Shah believes the visitors will be happy if Jasprit Bumrah is rested in the fourth Test match of the ongoing series. According to Cricbuzz, Bumrah is set to be rested for the penultimate Test of the series to manage his workload.
Bumrah has sent down 80.5 overs in the first three Test matches of the series. The Indian gun fast bowler has been right on the money for the hosts and England will certainly be delighted if he misses the fourth game. Bumrah is the leading wicket-taker of the ongoing series with 17 wickets in three matches at an impressive average of 13.65.
The ace fast bowler returned with 9-91 in the second Test match at Vizag and thus was awarded Player of the Match. Bumrah had 6-45 in the first innings and had bowled magnificently when the pitch was still flat.
Meanwhile, India took a 2-1 lead in the series after they won the Rajkot Test by a gargantuan margin of 434 runs, their biggest Test victory.
Speaking to Colors Cineplex, Owais Shah said, “I feel England will like a turning wicket because the way they have batted against spin in this series, they haven’t faced any difficulties. They have faced problems mostly against Jasprit Bumrah. I heard Bumrah is probably being rested for the next match. England will be happy if Jasprit Bumrah is rested.”
“If they get a turning wicket, England spinners can get some help and might control the run rate. This match slipped away from Ben Stokes’ hands because he wasn’t able to control the run rate as the wicket was very good for batting and your batters played amazingly well against our spinners,” Owais Shah stated.
Meanwhile, England’s middle order has failed to deliver the goods. The top order of Zak Crawley, Ben Duckett, and Ollie Pope have done a decent job but the rest of the batters have not stood tall. Shah reckons England will be worried as the batters have failed to get the job done.
“They would be worried. Ollie Pope played a 196-run knock in the first match and Ben Duckett scored a century in this match but the batting is not working as a unit. One or two players are playing well but the captain will want the entire unit to bat well.”
“If you somehow score 400-450 runs in the first innings, then you can put pressure on the opposition. That is not happening. So they might have to consider bringing in a spare batter. They have lost two consecutive Tests, so they will have to make some changes if they want to win this series,” Shah said.
India and England will next take on each other at JSCA International Stadium Complex, Ranchi in the fourth Test match from Friday.
