Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammed Shami and Bhuvneswar Kumar
Shastri believes the six-week New Zealand tour could serve as an important benchmark for Indian cricket, particularly with South Africa set to host the 2027 ODI World Cup.
Conditions there could also mirror some of what India might face in South Africa during the World Cup,” he said. “I’ve never told Pant anything other than this: be smart. “The entire tour is important. It will give a clear indication of where Indian cricket is heading. He has immense ability and shouldn’t change his natural game. Just remain aware of the match situation.”
Shastri stressed that India must carefully manage Jasprit Bumrah ’s workload in the build-up to the 2027 ODI World Cup While advocating the return of experienced campaigners.
“There is no substitute for experience,” Shastri told TOI. “He’s done enough with both red and white balls to be recalled to the Test and ODI sides,” he said. I’d rather preserve him for the two Tests in New Zealand, where he’ll be crucial,” he said.
New Delhi: Former India head coach Ravi Shastri has welcomed Bhuvneshwar Kumar ’s return to the T20I squad for the New Zealand tour and believes fellow veteran Mohammed Shami has done enough to earn a recall in the longer white-ball and red-ball formats. “When you have a bowler of Bhuvneshwar’s quality and experience, it’s a no-brainer. With the form he showed in the IPL and his years with India, he’ll be ideal for New Zealand conditions. “I don’t think he should play all three formats until the World Cup. He should focus primarily on Test cricket and feature sporadically in ODIs and T20Is.