Jasprit Bumrah. (AP Photo)

NEW DELHI: Workload management is the need of the hour for players who feature in all formats in this modern-day era of cricket in an effort to keep them afresh and injury free.
Jasprit Bumrah‘s workload management is the most talked about topic these days since India’s pace spearhead shouldered the significant burden in the recently-concluded Border-Gavaskar Trophy.

The star India pacer finished the series as the leading wicket-taker with an incredible tally of 32 wickets though India lost the series 1-3 after the six-wicket defeat in the fifth Test at the SCG.
The question now arises: what sparked the concerns over Bumrah’s workload management? Anxiety swept through the Indian camp when Bumrah, after bowling 10 overs and taking two wickets, left the field with the physio during the second session.
It was later revealed that a back spasm had ruled him out of bowling in the second innings, limiting his contribution to just batting.
Bumrah bowled 151.2 overs (908 deliveries) in the five-match series against Australia, raising the question of whether this workload contributed to his injury.
However, the numbers don’t support this theory, as Bumrah’s compatriot Mohammed Siraj and Aussie pacers Pat Cummins and Mitchell Starc, bowled more overs than him. Still, the fact that Bumrah was unable to bowl in the second innings of the SCG Test cannot be overlooked.
If stats are dug deeper, they reflect that this was not the first time that Bumrah has bowled over 150 overs for the first time.
The 31-year-old pacer had bowled 157.1 overs during the 2018-19 tour of Australia, when India made history by securing their first-ever Test series win Down Under.
India in Australia: Bowling workload through the years
In the 2024/25 Border-Gavaskar Trophy, Siraj led India’s bowling charge, bowling the most overs in the series with 157.1. Bumrah followed closely with 151.2 overs, while Akash Deep contributed 77.5 overs. Ravindra Jadeja added 63 overs, and Harshit Rana, Nitish Reddy, and Washington Sundar bowled 45, 44, and 37 overs, respectively. Prasidh Krishna bowled 27 overs, and Ravinchadran Ashwin, who announced his retirement from international cricket, contributed 18 overs.
2024/25 Border Gavaskar Trophy:

In the 2020/21 Border-Gavaskar Trophy, Siraj bowled the most overs for India, delivering 134.2 overs in the series. Ravichandran Ashwin was close behind with 134.1 overs, while Bumrah bowled 117.4 overs. Other key contributors included Washington Sundar (49 overs), Shardul Thakur (43 overs), and Navdeep Saini (41.5 overs). Umesh Yadav, T Natarajan, and Ravindra Jadeja added 39.4, 38.2, and 37.3 overs, respectively, playing crucial roles in India’s memorable series win.
2020/21 Border Gavaskar Trophy:

In the 2018/19 Border-Gavaskar Trophy, Bumrah bowled the most overs for India, with a total of 157.1. Mohammed Shami followed closely with 136.4 overs, while Ishant Sharma contributed 103 overs. Jadeja and Ashwin added 89 and 86.5 overs, respectively. Umesh Yadav, Hanuma Vihari, and Kuldeep Yadav bowled 37, 35, and 31.5 overs, respectively, playing key roles in India’s historic Test series win in Australia.
2018/19 Border Gavaskar Trophy

2014/15 BGT

2011/12 BGT

2007/08 BGT

2003/04 BGT

1999/2000 BGT