Would advise Jasprit Bumrah to choose rest over County Cricket, says Wasim Akram
Wasim Akram, who had some of the best years for Lancashire in the County Cricket, has stated that Jasprit Bumrah should prioritise rest over county for the amount of cricket he plays in a year. Akram further stated that young bowlers of the current generation should play more first-class cricket.
For 10 years from 1988 to 1998, Akram had a constant presence in the Lancashire set-up opened their bowling attack in their ECB Trophy, Benson and Hedges Cup, and National League tournaments. So much so that the local fans used to sing a song called "Wasim for England" at Lancashire's matches.
But times have changed, and players have a little downtime to play county matches amidst the busy international and league calendar. Keeping an eye on that count, Akram suggested Bumrah should stay away from county matches in the future to prolong his own career.
"Indian players play cricket round the year. Bumrah is currently India's top bowler and one of the best in the world. I would also have advised him to take rest (when there is no international cricket). As far as I am concerned, I used to play six months for Pakistan and six months for Lancashire. But due to time constraints, it becomes difficult in today's era," Akram told Akash Chopra on the latter’s own Podcast show “AakashVani”
While Akram has coached many T20 teams around the world, his legacy was set up because of his performances in the Test and ODI format. He has the distinction of being Pakistan’s highest ODI and Test wicket-taker, and from that experience alone, he suggested players prioritise the red-ball first-class cricket.
"In order to hone their skills further, young bowlers should play more first-class cricket. T20 is amazing, good entertainment, fun and there is money and I'm all for the importance of money in a sport and for the players. But I don't judge bowlers on the basis of their T20 performance. I do that on the basis of seeing how they fare in longer formats," he added.
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