To get best out of Bumrah, solid back-up crew needed

With the Indian team about to get a new captain for the England series, it will be interesting to see the approach the skipper, along with coach Gautam Gambhir, will want to adopt.

- Sanjeev K Samyal

MUMBAI:

Under Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma, the team took to fielding five specialist bowlers as a draw was looked upon as a loss. But will the new captain want to fight Bazball with Bazball or will he make wickets his target?

The key to winning a Test match is to take 20 wickets and the player holding the trump cards for India is Jasprit Bumrah. Looking at the conditions in England, the performance of the pace department will be crucial to the team's chances. India's hopes in the upcoming five-Test series will depend a lot on their tactical plan to get the best out of their pace ace.

To make optimum use of Bumrah, managing his workload and providing him strong support with the right selection picks in the pace department will be important.

Bumrah's backup The pacer from Ahmedabad was brilliant in the last Test series Australia too, picking up 32 wickets, but he missed support from the other end. It led to him being overworked and ultimately breaking down. Hence, it's essential that the bowlers be able to hunt in a pack. It is how it was on the last tour to England when India tied the five-match series, 2-2. With Ishant Sharma, Mohammed Shami, Mohammed Siraj and Shardul Thakur, the captain could ensure the pressure was always on the England batters.

India will need a repeat of that showing if they have to hold their own this time as well.