IND vs SA 2025: ‘He’s going to be lethal’ - Former Indian coach on Jasprit Bumrah's impact ahead of South Africa Tests

Published - 12 Nov 2025, 19:06 IST | Updated - 12 Nov 2025, 19:06 IST

Former Indian coach Abhishek Nayar opined that India’s ace pacer Jasprit Bumrah will make a huge impact even on the black turning pitch of Eden Gardens. The first Test between India and South Africa is scheduled to begin on November 14 in Kolkata.

The Eden Gardens pitch is traditionally made of black soil, which generally offers more assistance to spinners. However, recent reports suggest that this time Gautam Gambhir and his team will get a more seamer-friendly surface, with spinners expected to come into play during the later stages of the match. Nayar’s praise for Bumrah stood out, as he highlighted the pacer’s rare ability to deliver match-winning performances regardless of the surface.

“Those conditions, black soil, he is going to be lethal. Someone, the opposition is going to be discussing a lot about, and no matter how much you discuss, when you stand and you have to face him, it’s a completely different ball game. When Bumrah is in your attack, it kind of takes away from everyone else, and your focus is solely on Jasprit Bumrah picking wickets,” Nayar said on the Star Sports show Game Plan.

Speaking about Bumrah’s workload management, Nayar was slightly critical, describing the pacer as lucky due to the washed-out matches in the T20I series against Australia. According to Nayar, the rain-affected games have inadvertently helped Bumrah remain fresh ahead of the upcoming first Test against South Africa.

Nayar added that the additional rest could prove beneficial for Bumrah, who is expected to lead India’s pace attack at the Eden Gardens. He might be partnered with Mohammed Siraj and Akash Deep, forming a potent fast-bowling trio capable of exploiting any seam movement available on the Kolkata surface.

“Workload management again, he has been playing a lot of cricket, which is amazing to see. Luckily, in this T20 format (series against Australia), there were two games that were washed out. He will be relatively fresh and relatively excited because he is going to get conditions that he is going to really, really enjoy,” Nayar concluded.