Jasprit Bumrah Brushes Aside Fitness Talk After Fiery Fifer: 'I Try To Take Care Of My Body'

India vs South Africa 1st Test: Back to his incisive best, Jasprit Bumrah on Friday brushed aside the chatter around his workload management, insisting that he "tries to take care of his body" and said those "questions were not my questions".

On a dry pitch that prompted India to pick four spinners for the first time since 2012, it was Bumrah who grabbed 5/27, his only third fifer at home, and 16th overall, as South Africa folded for 159 in just 55 overs on the opening day.

There has been intense scrutiny over Bumrah in "picking" matches for his workload management post England summer test series. He could not bowl in the Sydney Test against Australia when he was sidelined from bowling on the final day due to a back spasm, then in England, he was rested for two Tests, the second and fifth that India won, fuelling critics questioning his commitment.

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"I try to give my best in whichever format I play. These questions are not my questions; I will not answer them. I try to play as much as I can. I try to take care of my body," Bumrah said at the press conference.

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A multi-format player, Bumrah has been playing continuously since England, as he played in the triumphant Asia Cup T20Is, then switched to Tests against West Indies last month, before playing T20Is in Australia in the last series. He, however, was rested for the ODI leg there.

"I try to give my best in each and every format... Rest, question-answer sessions, whoever wants to play, they can play. I'm happy as far as I'm able to contribute and try to learn new things."
With spinners traditionally ruling home conditions, Bumrah acknowledged how special such hauls are in India.

"Whenever you play in India, it is known that spinners will pick up a lot of wickets. So whenever you're able to make an impact with limited spells... It always feels good. I'm very happy with the performance. The job is still left in the Test match."

India vs South Africa Playing XIs, 1st Test:

India: Yashasvi Jaiswal, KL Rahul, Washington Sundar, Shubman (c), Rishabh Pant (wk), Ravindra Jadeja, Dhruv Jurel, Axar Patel, Kuldeep Yadav, Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammed Siraj

South Africa: Aiden Markram, Ryan Rickelton, Wiaan Mulder, Temba Bavuma (c), Tony de Zorzi, Tristan Stubbs, Kyle Verreynne (wk), Marco Jansen, Corbin Bosch, Simon Harmer, Keshav Maharaj