England will receive a break from the threat of Jasprit Bumrah for the fourth Test with India’s attack leader to be rested in Ranchi.
India had been toying with how to manage the 30-year-old’s workload and opted to push him into service during the third Test. Two more pivotal wickets followed to take Bumrah to 17 in the series overall and see the hosts win by a record 434 runs for a 2-1 lead.
But amid a swift turnaround – the fourth Test starts at the JSCA Stadium on Friday – Bumrah did not travel on the charter flight shared by the two sides and is understood to have returned to his family home in Ahmedabad, a four-hour drive from Rajkot.
A statement from Board of Control for Cricket in India confirmed: “Jasprit Bumrah has been released from the squad for the 4th IDFC First Bank Test against England in Ranchi. The decision was taken keeping in mind the duration of the series and amount of cricket he has played in recent times.”
The BCCI added that KL Rahul has been ruled out of the fourth Test with his return in Dharamsala subject to fitness while Virat Kohli, who is missing the entire series for personal reasons, has announced the birth of his second child, a son called Akaay.
Rest for Bumrah means respite for England and not least Joe Root, the former captain having fallen to him in each of the three Tests to date, including the much-discussed reverse scoop to slip in Rajkot that triggered an ultimately match-defining collapse on the third day.
Rohit Sharma (capt), Yashasvi Jaiswal, Shubman Gill, Rajat Patidar, Sarfaraz Khan, Dhruv Jurel (wkt), KS Bharat (wkt), Devdutt Padikkal, Ravichandran Ashwin, Ravindra Jadeja, Axar Patel, Washington Sundar, Kuldeep Yadav, Mohammed Siraj, Mukesh Kumar, Akash Deep.
Mukesh Kumar, who played in the second Test in Visakhapatnam, rejoins the squad with the uncapped Akash Deep, the other spare seamer, although who comes in for Bumrah will also depend on the surface in Ranchi. If a turning pitch is prepared, Axar Patel could return to the XI, leaving Mohammed Siraj as their solitary seamer.
England will similarly have to consider the makeup of their attack, amid a growing expectation that Jimmy Anderson will be handed a breather. Mark Wood was notably held back on the fourth day in Rajkot, sending down just two overs, with seamer Ollie Robinson and spinner Shoaib Bashir the options to step up from the bench.
The latter’s prospects may hinge on whether Ben Stokes feels ready to accelerate his return to all-rounder status. The England captain has resumed bowling in the nets on tour after knee surgery last November, with the summer his original goal. But in the wake of last Sunday’s defeat came an admission this plan may now change.
