Does workload matter when representing a country? India pacer Akash Deep says ‘It’s not in my hands. It depends on…’

At a time when Mohammed Siraj played all the five Tests against England, world’s no.1 pacer Jasprit Bumrah appeared in just three of the five due to workload management. Although the Indian team drew the Test series 2-2 under the captaincy of Shubman Gill, the debate around ‘workload management’ divided the Indian cricket fraternity into two halves. 

While Bumrah bowled 119.4 overs, Siraj accounted for 185.3. Besides the two, another workhorse Akash Deep played a crucial role both with the bat and ball in the England tour, playing three Tests. The Bengal pacer played three Tests, bowled 109.1 overs in the series, scored a fifty and took 12 wickets including a match-winning 6/99 in Birmingham. 

But does workload really matter when representing a country? The 28-year-old chose to play safe. “It’s not in my hands. It depends on the team staff and physios,” said Akash Deep while responding to Livemint’s query, on the sidelines of Cricket Association of Bengal’s (CAB) Annual Awards on Saturday in Kolkata. 

“The Indian cricket team has a medical team, they manage these things. They follow a process, it’s in their hands.” If they say, you have to rest and it is not possible to play the match, then you have to rest. As a result, we do not have everything in our hands. There, the whole thing happens through a specific process. That is in their hands,” added the India pacer. 

Body needed rest after England tour: Akash Deep 

Having made his debut against England at home in 2024, Akash Deep has so far played 10 Tests with 28 wickets in his tally. In a quick span of time, the Bihar-born Bengal fast-bowler has grown into one of the important soldier of the Indian cricket team in the longest format of the game. 

Having been on the road since the September-October last year, Akash Deep needed a long rest. After the gruelling England tour, Akash Deep had to skip the ongoing Duleep Trophy due to the impact injury that he suffered during the final Test against England at The Oval. 

With the home Test series against West Indies and South Africa later in the year next, Akash Deep will be starting his net sessions from Sunday. “There was no injury, just an impact. I will start bowling from tomorrow. I’m feeling good. I have been playing constantly for six months so the body needed a bit of rest,” concluded Akash Deep.