Jasprit Bumrah makes massive revelation about Test captaincy ahead of ENG vs IND 2025 series

Indian bowling spearhead Jasprit Bumrah has said that he personally informed the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) that he did not want to be India's new Test captain. The 31-year-old said that he had told the board about the decision even before Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma had retired from the longest format.

The pacer was one of the two choices, along with Shubman Gill, for the Test match captaincy. However, the latter was named the new captain on May 24 when the Indian squad for the five-Test series was announced.

"Before Rohit and Virat retired during the IPL, I had spoken to the BCCI about my workloads going forward in a five-test match series. I've spoken to the people who have managed my back. I've spoken to the surgeon as well, who's always spoken to me about how smart you have to be about the workloads.

"So I did speak to him, and then we came to the conclusion that I have to be a little smarter. So then I called the BCCI and said I don't want to be looked at in a leadership role because I won't be able to give all the Test matches in a five-test match series," Bumrah told Sky Sports in an interview.

Bumrah has led India in two Test matches. He made his captaincy debut against England at Edgbaston in 2022. Two years later, he captained for the second time in a Test match against Australia at Perth in November 2024.

Jasprit Bumrah said his preparation for the 2025 England Tour is no different to any other series

This will be Jasprit Bumrah's third bilateral tour to England, having played here in 2018 and 2021/22. The pacer said that nothing had changed preparation-wise for him ahead of the 2025 tour of England.

Bumrah felt that the end result did not matter to him, as long as he was clear about how he had prepared for a series.

"Nothing changes for me. In any tournament, in any situation that I go, I look at myself. So I have got a lot more experience. I have come here many times. I know there is an aggressive style to how they play, but I play a lot of white-ball cricket."

"I understand how an aggresive style goes but I look at myself. How do I prepare myself? What is my mindset? Whenever I am getting ready for a Test series, whenever I have done well, what was I thinking? What was my mental space? So I look at that."

"When I tick all of those boxes and I go to the ground, I give myself the best chance that I prepared to the best of my ability. Now I leave it how it is, I'll enjoy the game and give it my best shot. Some days it will go well, some days it will not go well. But as preparation point of view, that's what I look at," Bumrah said.

India will square off against England in the first of the five Tests at Leeds on Friday, June 20.