Sourav Ganguly allows Jasprit Bumrah to skip Gujarat's Ranji Trophy game

BCCI President Sourav Ganguly has decided to keep protocol aside and let Jasprit Bumrah continue his rest rather than playing the Ranji Trophy game for Gujarat against Kerala. Bumrah was all set to represent Gujarat, but he was looking for a rather smoother return to cricket after a three-month long break. Ganguly has given him the nod to continue his break and recuperation. Bumrah will now directly be playing the T20Is versus Sri Lanka and making his international comeback.

According to sources quoted in Times of India the Gujarat team was told to not let Bumrah bowl more than eight overs in a day as he was recovering from his injury. But the Gujarat team did not take this suggestion seriously as they felt someone as potent as Bumrah bowling only eight overs will not serve the interest of the team. Sources in the know told Times of India,

"When we acknowledge Bumrah's potential and say 'he's the best in the world', we also need to treat him like one."

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Explaining further, they reasoned, "There's much time for the Test series in New Zealand. In fact, the first Test begins on February 21 next year. Until then, he doesn't play any red ball cricket. So there was no hurry. He can start with bowling four overs in a T20 game for now and play a Ranji Trophy match possibly closer to when it's time to fly to New Zealand. The request has also been conveyed to the Gujarat Cricket Association (GCA) which obviously has Team India's best interests in mind."