Former England batter Mark Butcher believes veteran pacer Jasprit Bumrah must play the second Test of the Anderson-Tendulkar Trophy at Edgbaston, starting July 2 as well. Despite India trailing 0-1 in the five-match series, Bumrah’s participation in the second Test remains uncertain due to his workload management.

Talking about the same on the Wisden Cricket Weekly podcast, Butcher said: “Bumrah is going to be a huge talking point as to whether or not this is one of his three Test matches. I think it has to be, it absolutely has to be. Six day break after Headingley, 1-0 down, he plays. I know he wants to play at Lord’s but the needs of the team and the series are more important than his wish to play a Test at Lord’s. And who knows, he might get through this one okay and be fine for Lord’s, and then you take your chances at the back-end.”

Mark Butcher also urged India to pick Kuldeep Yadav and Arshdeep Singh instead of Prasidh Krishna and Shardul Thakur for the Edgbaston Test against England.

“First and foremost, depending on what you’ve got in you squad, you try and pick bowlers that the opposition – England, with their shot-making preference – would like the least. What they would very much enjoy are mid to low eighties seam bowlers. What they would enjoy much less than that is left-arm leg spin, if you have one – and India do have one. That would be the starting point,” again said Butcher.

“A left-arm swing bowler is also perhaps an option. If Arshdeep [Singh] comes in, I think Prasidh Krishna was found wanting…. If you can manage it, you go Siraj, Bumrah, Arshdeep, Kuldeep, Jadeja, and you take the cards where they fall with your batting. Simply because – I said it at the time during the first Test match – I couldn’t see how Shardul was going to make enough runs to make up for his lack of potency with the ball,” Mark Butcher concluded.