Former South African pacer Dale Steyn has chastised the Indian team management, especially captain Shubman Gill and head coach Gautam Gambhir, for not including Jasprit Bumrah in the starting XI for the second Test against England in Birmingham.
Bumrah, who was replaced by Akash Deep, produced a standout performance in the first Test at Headingley, Leeds, taking five wickets in the opening innings. India made three changes to their lineup, resting Bumrah despite trailing 0-1 in the game.
Steyn compared the decision to Portugal benching Cristiano Ronaldo, questioning the wisdom of resting a match-winner when the squad is already under duress.
“So Portugal has the world’s best striker, Ronaldo, and they choose not to play him.
That’s crazy. That’s like India having Bumrah but choosing not to play him… wait, what? “Shit, I’m confused,” Dale Steyn remarked in X.
So Portugal have the best striker in the world in Ronaldo and they chose not to play him.
Thats madness.
That’s like India having Bumrah and choosing not to play, umm, him… wait, oh, no, what! shit I’m confused 😵💫
— Dale Steyn (@DaleSteyn62) July 2, 2025
Prior to the series, India had announced that Bumrah would feature in only three of the five Test matches as part of a workload management plan. The decision, made on the strict advice of the BCCI medical team, was confirmed by chief selector Ajit Agarkar during the squad announcement in May.
Despite several experts urging the team management to include the 31-year-old pacer for the second Test, Gill and Gambhir opted to rest him. They confirmed that Bumrah would sit out the Edgbaston Test, sticking to the predetermined policy.
“Just to manage his workload. We did get a good break and this is an important match for us. But the third Test being at Lord’s, we think there’ll be more in that pitch so we’ll use him there,” Gill said at the toss.
Speaking of the match, India ended Day 1 on a strong note, finishing at 310 for 5. Gill led from the front, scoring an unbeaten 114, his second consecutive century in the series. The opener Yashasvi Jaiswal provided a solid start with a fluent 87, while Ravindra Jadeja remained not out on 41 alongside Gill at stumps.
For England, local star Chris Woakes was the pick of the bowlers while returning with figures of 2 for 59 from his 21 overs.
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