'Can't Bowl 20 Overs in Innings? Go Back to T20s' - Balwinder Sandhu's Message Amid Workload Management Concerns

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India's 1983 World Cup-winner Balwinder Singh Sandhu disagrees with the term "workload management", saying a bowler should go back to T20s if he is not able to bowl 20 overs in an innings.

Sandhu comments come after worry of the load shared by Indian pacers Jasprit Bumrah and Mohammed Siraj during the recently concluded Border-Gavaskar Trophy Test series in Australia. While Siraj bowled 164.1 overs, Bumrah managed 151.2 overs before eventually breaking down with injury in the final Test.

The Indian pace spearhead Bumrah suffered an undisclosed injury reportedly believed to be a back spasm that could see him miss part of the ICC Champions Trophy next month. Many believed the amount of overs bowled by the pacer led to his injury, but Sandhu does not agree with it.

"Workload? How many overs did he (Bumrah) bowl? 150-something, right? But in how many matches or innings? Five matches or nine innings, correct? That comes down to 16 overs per innings or 30 overs per match. And he didn't bowl those 15-plus overs in one go. He bowled in spells. So, is it a big deal?" Sandhu told TimesofIndia.com.

"Workload management is bull****. These are Australian terms, created by Australians. I come from an era when cricketers used to listen to their bodies and no one else. I don't agree with this at all."

Sandhu further took examples of Kapil Dev and his other bowling partners, who bowled 25-30 overs a day, before adding that one should bowl at least 20 overs in an innings to aspire to play for the country.

"We used to bowl 25-30 overs in a day. Kapil (Dev) has bowled long spells throughout his career. Your body and muscles get conditioned when you bowl, bowl, and bowl," Sandhu added.

"If you want to represent India, you should have the strength to bowl at least 20 overs in an innings. If you can't, then it's better to go back and play T20s, where you only need to bowl four overs. Even those four overs are bowled in three spells."

"Today, you have the best physios, the best masseurs, and excellent doctors to take care of your body. If a bowler can't bowl 20 overs in an innings, he should forget about playing for India."

One may argue that Bumrah, who has an unorthodox bowling action, is expected to wear down, especially with amount of cricket apart from Test cricket being played in the mordern day compared to the early years of cricket.