IND vs ENG Tests 2025: Who supports Bumrah? India’s third seamer call could define series

The formula of India’s recent resurgence in Tests overseas is simple — bowl better than your opposition. As India kickstarts its next World Test Championship (WTC) cycle with a five-match series in England under newly appointed skipper Shubman Gill, the adage rings truer than ever.

Over three English summers in the 2010s, the Indians failed abjectly in this endeavour, with the gulf between the two attacks widening. India finally closed the gap during the tour of 2021, drawing the five-match series 2-2, and Jasprit Bumrah was the point of difference.

Bumrah’s bowling average of 26.27 is the best for any Indian bowler who has played at least five Tests in England, and he will do the heavy lifting again.

On the tour of 2021, he led the wickets chart with 21 scalps at an average of 22.47, and left India’s second-best bowler — Mohammed Siraj, who averaged 33 for his 18 wickets — far behind in terms of control and discipline. That difference in quality and incisiveness vis-à-vis his peers, and not so much the opposition, is a chink the visitor will want to address.

With resources and experience in short supply, the task will be doubly hard. Bumrah can only feature in three Tests to manage his workload, Siraj is coming off a limited-overs snub, Mohammad Shami’s persistent fitness issues have ruled him out, and Prasidh Krishna, Akash Deep and Arshdeep Singh have never played a Test in England. But optimising scarce resources is the name of the game, and for starters, the Indian team management will want to nail down the three matches it wants Bumrah to feature in.

The blueprint of the 2021 series in England offers an intriguing insight. Bumrah outshone his bowling partners in the three matches India failed to win — at Nottingham, Leeds and Edgbaston — averaging 19.43 for his 16 wickets, as compared to his peers’ 26 wickets at 48.80. However, in the victories at Lord’s and The Oval, Bumrah’s bowling average of 29.42 paled in comparison to his teammates’ 24.63.

Bumrah’s ability to take the pitch and conditions out of the equation owing to his unique skills, facilitated by his even more unique bowling action, makes him an ideal candidate for venues where his teammates could struggle.

Among the five venues for the upcoming series, The Oval (fifth Test), Manchester (fourth Test), and Leeds (first Test) have produced the least amount of swing since 2021. Given Bumrah’s ability to transcend conditions, playing him at these venues could help India optimise his availability.

In the absence of Shami, India will need to identify a new-ball bowler to partner Bumrah. While Siraj seems to be an obvious choice, his skills are best utilised with a semi-old ball (30–59 overs old). His average dropped to 27.8 from 36.50 when operating with an older ball during the 2021 tour, and the 31-year-old is better suited to do the job as a first-change bowler.

Selection tilt: Shardul Thakur may have scored a century in the intra-squad game, but Nitish Kumar Reddy is still favoured to take the seam-bowling all-rounder’s spot in the XI. 
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India’s bid to identify its third pacer could be informed by its search for a new-ball bowler who can make the most of the conditions and the Dukes ball early on. While Akash has shown a penchant for making early inroads in his limited experience, he is yet to prove himself outside India and endured a tough tour of Australia, where he averaged 54 in two Tests. Arshdeep’s new-ball prowess and left-arm angle could earn him a maiden Test cap, but his average of almost 42 during his five-match County Championship stint with Kent doesn’t inspire confidence. Moreover, Arshdeep has a reputation for lacking consistency in managing the old ball and is ineffective once it loses its sheen. Still, with a ‘Bazballing’ England likely to field at least five right-handed batters in its top eight, Arshdeep can make a strong case for himself. Owing to his natural angle and ability to swing the ball both ways, his numbers against right-handers (bowling average 21.93) see a significant improvement when compared to his overall average of 30.37 in First-Class cricket.

Prasidh, on the other hand, can be a handful with the old ball with his height and ability to hit the deck hard. Though he is largely untested with the new ball, Prasidh’s tearaway pace and scorching run in the recently concluded Indian Premier League could tip the scales in his favour. However, Prasidh’s inclusion in the playing XI could force Siraj to operate largely with the new ball, which isn’t his strongest suit.

Thus, while making its choice for the third seamer, India will have to make a trade-off between new-ball expertise and old-ball prowess — Arshdeep or Prasidh. Meanwhile, Akash could get a look-in when Bumrah doesn’t play. In an ideal world, India would have wanted a well-rounded four-man pace attack to lead the charge, but its undercooked batting unit warrants the insurance of a seam-bowling all-rounder.

New-ball test: With Prasidh Krishna in the XI, Mohammed Siraj may have to take on more new-ball duties — an area that hasn’t always played to his strengths. 
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Shardul Thakur had a taste of English conditions during the tour in 2021, but Nitish Kumar Reddy appears to be the frontrunner, especially with bowling coach Morne Morkel admitting he wants to see the 22-year-old bowl more often in Tests.

Similarly, the selection of the lone spinner in the XI will be hostage to the extent of batting depth the team requires. Only one of Ravindra Jadeja and Washington Sundar is a likely starter, with the possibility of slotting in specialist spinner Kuldeep Yadav only arising in favourable conditions, such as those prevalent at The Oval.

Spin dilemma: India is likely to pick just one between Ravindra Jadeja and Washington Sundar, with Kuldeep Yadav an option only if conditions, like those at The Oval, favour spin.
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Despite a lack of experience, pedigree, and Bumrah’s limited availability, the Indian bowling attack has a golden opportunity to eclipse its counterpart.

The legendary duo of James Anderson and Stuart Broad has walked into the sunset, and a spearhead isn’t on the horizon. Mark Wood, Jofra Archer and Gus Atkinson are battling injuries; Chris Woakes is on the mend, and a host of up-and-coming quicks are also contending with fitness issues.

In 2007 — the last time India won a Test series in England and much before the country showed signs of ushering in a pace-bowling renaissance — the trio of Zaheer Khan, R. P. Singh and S. Sreesanth, with some help from Sourav Ganguly’s dibbly-dobblies and the inimitable Anil Kumble, outshone the hosts.

The crop that followed, comprising Ishant Sharma, Umesh Yadav and Shami, raised the pace quotient a notch up, but a win in England remained elusive for over a decade.

Now, with a generational genius in Bumrah showing the way, India’s white-ball exponents will want their moment in the sun with the red cherry and to snap an 18-year wait.