'Jasprit Bumrah Is Not Technically Sound': Ex-India Pacer Wants 'Golden Boy' Restricted To Tests

News cricket 'Jasprit Bumrah Is Not Technically Sound': Ex-India Pacer Wants 'Golden Boy' Restricted To Tests

'Jasprit Bumrah Is Not Technically Sound': Ex-India Pacer Wants 'Golden Boy' Restricted To Tests

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Last Updated: August 07, 2026, 10:42 IST

Raju Kulkarni says Jasprit Bumrah is India's greatest fast bowler, but he cannot sustain playing all three formats.

Jasprit Bumrah suffered an injury during England tour. (Reuters Photo)

Jasprit Bumrah’s unique, unorthodox action makes him a lethal pacer but it also puts his body under lot of stress which makes him an injury prone bowler. His recurring injury concerns stem from technical flaws in his bowling action, feels former India fast bowler Raju Kulkarni who feels to the premier pacer’s workload needs to be managed even more carefully and suggested that he should ideally be preserved for Test cricket.

The 63-year-old Kulkarni’s comments come days after Bumrah was ruled out of India’s upcoming two-Test series in Sri Lanka despite being initially named in the squad subject to fitness.

The BCCI later announced that Bumrah has failed to recover fully from the impact injury to his left knee that he sustained while fielding during the second ODI against England in Cardiff in July. The injury reportedly led to reactive swelling, forcing him to miss the third ODI, and he was unavailable to get fit on time for the Sri Lanka tour.

Kulkarni, who played 3 Tests and 10 ODIs between 1983 and 1987, said Bumrah is India’s greatest fast bowler but not technically sound like Kapil Dev and Richard Hadlee.

“Bumrah’s our golden boy. He’s India’s best ever fast bowler. But I think he’s not a technically sound bowler which is why he’s so injury prone. Bowlers like Richard Hadlee or Kapil Dev were technically sound and that’s why they kept on going," Kulkarni was quoted as saying by the mid-day.

Kulkarni says India need to rethink Bumrah’s long-term workload across formats.

“I don’t think Bumrah can sustain playing all formats. The team management must consider playing him only in Tests as that’s a critical format. Though he may want to play IPL, T20I and ODIs too, it’s not viable," he said.

He advised bringing back Mohammed Shami for Tests and Bhuvneshwar Kumar for T20Is to offer support to Mohammed Siraj and reduce the pressure on Bumrah.

“For this reason, it will be great if Mohammed Siraj can get the support of senior pacers like Shami and Bhuvi. Bhuvi should be used in T20Is because he’s done brilliantly in the IPL. And you can rotate Shami and Siraj in Tests. This will reduce the pressure on Bumrah," Kulkarni said.

Bumrah, India’s pace spearhead, has seen his career repeatedly interrupted due to a host of injuries that includes a lengthy lay-off due to a back stress injury in 2022-23.

Central to India’s red-ball success in recent years, Bumrah has claimed 234 wickets at an average of 19.79 from 52 Tests and is often regarded as the greatest fast bowler of the modern era given how he can leave an impact on lifeless pitches too.

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About the Author Feroz Khan Feroz Khan has been covering sports for over 12 years now and is currently working with Network18 as Principal Correspondent. He embarked on his journey in 2011 and has since acquired vast experience ... Read More

First Published: August 07, 2026, 10:42 IST

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