Why Jasprit Bumrah, Axar Patel are not playing in IND Vs NZ 2nd T20I?

Revealing why Bumrah, Axar are not playing [Source: AFP Photo]

After thrashing New Zealand in the first T20I in Nagpur, India is set to take on the visitors in the second game at Raipur, with the mission to strengthen their position in the series. With dew settling in the Nagpur game, the Indian bowlers delivered the goods, and this time around, the tables have turned as India is set to bat second.

Suryakumar Yadav called it right at the toss as he elected to field first, but eyebrows were raised when he stated that both Jasprit Bumrah and Axar Patel are unavailable for the contest, with Harshit Rana and Kuldeep Yadav replacing them.

Why was such a decision taken? Is there any injury to the two players who missed out? Here are the details.

Why Suryakumar Yadav replaced Bumrah and Axar Patel in 2nd T20I?

Bumrah is not only India’s best T20I bowler, but is perhaps the best in the business across the globe. Hence, his non-selection was the talk of the town, but here is the key reason why he is not playing in the second T20I.

With the T20 World Cup just around the corner, India is closely monitoring Bumrah’s fitness and workload management. He has been injury-prone in recent years, and the management wants him fresh for the marquee event in India/sri Lanka.

He is going to be India’s key bowler in the tournament, and India only wants him to play a couple of games in the ongoing series just to maintain his fitness. Understandably, he was poor in the first T20I against the Kiwis, and perhaps the team feels he is not match ready.

However, this is not the case with Axar Patel. He would have played the second T20I, but in the first game, the Indian all-rounder injured his finger and was taken off the field. India doesn’t want another injury-blow before the World Cup, and hence, his injury will be carefully monitored.

How much will the absence hurt India in the second T20I?

As stated earlier, Bumrah is India’s best bowler, and he is someone who can give India wickets in the powerplay, in the middle-overs, and also in death, which is his specialty. A flat surface has been laid down for the second game in Raipur, and India would have ideally wanted Bumrah to be a part of the bowling attack.

Moreover, he boasts a strong record against New Zealand in T20Is, and the Kiwi batters will relish playing against India in the absence of their star bowler.

Axar, on the other hand, has been Gautam Gambhir’s key player in the T20I setup. He can bat anywhere in the top seven, and if needed, can play as an aggressor and can also anchor the innings. Alongside his batting prowess, Axar is a street-smart bowler who can take wickets across any phase in T20Is, and india will miss his services, especially in the middle-overs.

Hence, the other bowlers - Harshit Rana, Arshdeep Singh, and Varun Chakravarthy have to step up in the absence of the two key bowlers.