With or Sans Jasprit Bumrah; Gautam Gambhir-Shubman Gill Need to Back Arshdeep Singh at Birmingham

England vs India: India need to bounce back after a heartbreaking loss at Headingley. But even before the game starts, all the talk is around Jasprit Bumrah - will he play or won't he? In the first innings at Leeds, it was evident that India were heavily dependent on Bumrah, and hence the question is - what about the rest? Mohammed Siraj has looked off-colour, while Prasidh Krishna was at least among the wickets. 

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Shardul Thakur picked up two in two in the fourth innings and gave India hope. But, it is clear if India have to win - Bumrah has to fire and he lacks support. 

Why Arshdeep Could be a Game-Changer? 

The left-arm pacer could be a game-changer purely because of the angle he creates. The pace batter for India looks a little lean beyond Bumrah and that is where Arshdeep could be a good addition. Also, what makes Arshdeep's case strong is the fact that he has County experience which helps. He has a good knowledge of the conditions and should not take long to adjust. There are whispers about Arshdeep, but not a strong one. His height could also work to his advantage as he is tall. 

Arshdeep has 66 wickets from 21 first-class games played so far. He managed to register his career best figures of 6/40 in the Duleep Trophy in 2024. This means form-wise as well, Arshdeep is right up there. 

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Will Bumrah Feature at Birmingham? 

Most reports claim, he will. That of course is good news for fans as India would be looking to level things up at Edgbaston before heading to London. Bumrah would play a massive factor at Birmingham as he will shoulder the responsibility of leading the Indian attack.