IND vs IRE: You Will Only Know If He Is Fully Fit When...: Ravi Shastri Still Not Convinced About Jasprit Bumrah's Fitness

Jasprit Bumrah might be bowling well in the nets and is roaring to make his much-awaited return to international cricket, but Ravi Shastri is in no mood to give a verdict on the pacer’s fitness as of now.

The former India allrounder and head coach has said that he will be assured of the pacer’s fitness only after seeing him play a competitive match. Jasprit Bumrah will be making his return to international cricket after almost a year when he leads Team India in the first T20I against Ireland on Friday (August 18).

With most of the first-choice players not included in the squad for the upcoming Asia Cup, Jasprit Bumrah has been named as the captain of the second-string team. He will become the first fast bowler to lead India in the shortest format of the game. Jasprit Bumrah has led India in one Test but is yet to don the captain’s hat in the limited-overs format.

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All eyes will be on him as he will be proving his match fitness ahead of the Asia Cup and the World Cup. The pacer has not played a competitive game since September last year. In recent times, several videos of his bowling have emerged and showed the pacer in good rhythm.

Ravi Shastri on Jasprit Bumrah’s fitness:

Ravi Shastri is not getting carried away with all the videos of Jasprit Bumrah’s bowling in the nets. The former India coach said that the reason behind his apprehension is the difference between net fitness and match fitness. Speaking on Star Sports, Shastri stated that a final verdict on Bumrah’s fitness can be given only after seeing him in action on the field.

“You will only know if he is fully fit when you see him playing in matches. That’s when you get a fair idea. No amount of bowling in the nets is going to tell you how fit a player is. There’s one thing called net fitness, and there’s one thing called match fitness. So these three games become very important for Jasprit,” said Shastri.

“He is captaining the side, so he will know exactly how to use himself there, and it will give you a fair idea. And to be fair, the whole world is waiting for him because he is one of those kind of bowlers who rose to the pinnacle so quickly with some brilliant performances,” Shastri added.

If everything goes well, Jasprit Bumrah is likely to be named in India’s squad for the Asia Cup too. The squad is likely to be announced this week.