Team India batter Cheteshwar Pujara and legendary cricketer Sunil Gavaskar made a light-hearted yet earnest appeal to Sanjana Ganesan, wife of pacer Jasprit Bumrah, to convince him to play all five Tests in the ongoing series against England. Speaking on Sony Sports, Pujara asked Sanjana to convince Bumrah to play all five matches in the series despite fitness concerns. "I have a request for you tomorrow. You will have to convince Jasprit to play a few more games. Just try it," said Pujara. Gavaskar joined the conversation, pointing out the eight-day breaks between most matches. " There is a gap. See, there is an eight-day gap, so the next Test is not a problem. Then it is Lord's, and you cannot miss Lord’s. After that, again, there is an eight-day gap. Then comes Manchester. The ball swings there no matter the month. The Oval is just five days. So Jasprit, we need you. Please play all five Tests," Gavaskar said.

Sanjana laughed at the suggestion and replied, "You are the one who can convince." She added that she would let Bumrah know about the conversation.

Ahead of Day Four, Ganesan interviewed Bumrah and passed on the message from the two former India cricketers. The 31-year-old pacer responded with a smile, saying, “That is a conversation that we will have on another day.”

Team India’s management, including chief selector Ajit Agarkar and head coach Gautam Gambhir, had earlier said that Bumrah would likely play only three Tests due to a back injury he suffered during the Border-Gavaskar Trophy. The injury also kept him out of the Champions Trophy.

Bumrah impressed in the first innings of the Headingley Test, taking five wickets for 83 runs. It was his 14th five-wicket haul in Tests and his 12th in overseas conditions. Despite his strong performance, Bumrah was unlucky to miss out on more wickets due to three dropped catches and a no-ball that denied him Harry Brook’s dismissal. Brook went on to score 99 runs, while Ollie Pope made 106, helping England post 465.