With Jasprit Bumrah ruled out of India’s two-Test series against Sri Lanka, starting August 15, because of a knee injury, former India fast bowler Karsan Ghavri has called for the return of experienced pacers Mohammed Shami and Bhuvneshwar Kumar. Ghavri believes India should not depend only on Bumrah and should use senior bowlers to reduce the workload on the star fast bowler.Shami impressed for Bengal in the Ranji Trophy last season, taking 37 wickets, while Bhuvneshwar claimed 28 wickets during Royal Challengers Bengaluru’s IPL 2026 title-winning campaign.Speaking to Mid-Day, Ghavri said both bowlers have shown they are fit and deserve another chance.“Shami and Bhuvi have been playing consistently in the IPL without injuries and should return to the national set-up. Selectors should consider them,” Ghavri said.“All fast bowlers face niggles or injuries, but Bumrah has been on and off for the last two-three years. He has hardly played an entire series. That’s not a good sign for him or for the country,” he said.Ghavri also suggested that Bumrah should take a long break to fully recover instead of returning before he is completely fit.“Bumrah should take a break for five to six months or even a year, and get back to 100 per cent fitness. The issue is that he goes into tournaments even if he’s half-fit and then, due to workload management, halfway through, there’s a breakdown. This is unnecessary. Only if he can manage his workload throughout a tournament should he be included in the team.”Ghavri said India should focus on using Bumrah mainly in Test cricket while sharing the workload with Shami, Mohammed Siraj and Bhuvneshwar.“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,” Ghavri said.“Though he may want to play IPL, T20Is and ODIs too, it’s not viable. For this reason, it will be great if Mohammed Siraj can get the support of senior pacers like Shami and Bhuvi,” the former pacer said.“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,” he said.
