Out of T20 World Cup: Why must Jasprit Bumrah play in the IPL?

Since the last T20 World Cup in the UAE, Jasprit Bumrah has missed the entire home series against New Zealand, the entire home series against West Indies, one ODI and two T20Is in England, the entire West Indies tour, the Zimbabwe tour, and the Asia Cup.

You are probably aware by now that Jasprit Bumrah is out of the forthcoming ICC Men's Twenty20 World Cup. And with that, India’s chances at the event have taken a massive blow. In the absence of their premium fast bowler, India’s bowling stocks wear a distinct late '90s feel — remember when Abey Kuruvilla, Debasis Mohanty and Harvinder Singh used to be India’s "fast bowling" attack? Those dreamy days when Sanath Jayasuriya, Saeed Anwar, Aravinda de Silva, Ijaz Ahmed and co. would line up to smash India in all corners of subcontinental grounds. Fun days.

Thankfully, we aren’t in the '90s any more. Our current fast bowlers are actually fast, Bumrah in particular. India now has a fast-bowling attack, and a team, that is worthy of the country around which the sport commercially revolves. They also win big tournaments frequently. The Indian Premier League (IPL) is the biggest cricket tournament going around, and an Indian team has won every single edition of the IPL until now. This is true even for the editions of the IPL that were held outside India.

On a serious note, India have not won a single Twenty20 World Cup since the IPL came into existence. With every passing edition of the World Cup where India fails, this is beginning to weigh down on them more and more heavily. Early exits without a single Super Eight win in 2009 and 2010. Another Super Eight exit in 2012. Defeats in the final in 2014, and the semi-final in 2016. IPL-desh’s repeated failure at the world event used to be treated as an unusual oddity that people would joke about uneasily. But after the pre-semifinal exit in the 2021 event, it has transformed from a merely pesky Betaal-esque presence on the team’s psyche to a full-fledged albatross around their necks, braying the cacophonous tune of the IPL horn.

So, is the IPL to blame for India’s subpar show at T20 World Cups? Have the Indian cricketers been blinded by the glitz and glamour of the IPL so much so that they don’t bring their A-game to the international arena any more? Is Bumrah a selfish money-grubber who will run in tirelessly, day in and day out, for the Mumbai Indians, only to turn up crocked days before the World Cup? The knives are out, and the club versus country hand-wringing is in full swing once again.

It is true that Bumrah has consistently featured in the Mumbai Indians’ IPL XI over the years. However, the IPL ended in May, and it’s far-fetched to blame his current injury on his exertions from over four months before. But then, isn’t the IPL a high-intensity tournament, with a lot of packing and travel, practice and gameplay, packed into a small period? Well, yes it is, but for all his game-time in the IPL, Bumrah sent down just 53 overs in the entire season. For contrast, he often bowls about 40 overs in a single Test match for India. And this year’s IPL was held entirely within Mumbai, so the packing and travel strains were significantly lesser.

Bumrah bowls a lot, and for a bowler of his calibre that is understandable. Since January 2020, no one has bowled more overs for India across formats than him. And only four bowlers, from any country, have bowled more than he has. This is despite the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) actively monitoring Bumrah’s workload, and resting him from many ODI and T20 series. At the best of times, fast bowling is a craft that takes a toll on the body, and Bumrah also happens to have an unusual, high-stress action. Besides, aged around 29, he is entering that phase of life when niggles become injuries, when bodies start paying the dues accumulated over years of wear and tear.

So then, given how important he is to the Indian team’s cause, shouldn’t Bumrah stop playing the IPL altogether?

The question is rhetorical. How many among us would refuse a two-month gig that pays astronomically more than our regular day job? Yeah, thought so. None of us.

But the fact of the matter is that even this reasoning is moot, since Bumrah has no say in whether or not he can play in the IPL, as long as he wishes to remain a contracted BCCI cricketer.

The IPL is now the BCCI’s single-most important cricketing event. It generates significantly more cash than any international series, or even the World Cup. It is in the BCCI’s best interests that they stage a blockbuster IPL, at whatever cost. And hence, they ensure their biggest stars show up for the IPL, and this is easily done since they control all India player contracts. The BCCI exerts this upper-hand on its players without even having to be explicit about it.

In order to ensure the IPL remains the most sought-after T20 league, it is also in the BCCI’s interests to keep their stars exclusive to the IPL. This is why Bumrah has never played in the Big Bash League, and why KL Rahul or Rishabh Pant can’t ply their trade in the Caribbean Premier League. Not because they don’t want to, and not because they don’t have the time, but because the BCCI would never allow them to.

Isn’t it bad for Indian cricket that their stars aren’t getting exposed to the best of T20 thinking that is now emerging apace at these different leagues around the world?

Well yes, if your priority is for India to be winning World Cups. And no, if your priority is the IPL’s burgeoning coffers.

Like I said at the top, the IPL is the biggest cricket tournament in the world, and an Indian team will always win the IPL. Remember this when the IPL-desh fails yet again in this year’s T20 World Cup.