Mumbai Indians have a herculean task even before first ball is bowled in the 18th edition of Indian Premier League (IPL). Without Jasprit Bumrah, the onus of leading the seam bowling falls on Trent Boult and Deepak Chahar. They might be good to cover the powerplay overs but the depth and variety of Bumrah, especially at the death, cannot be ignored.
At the pre-season press conference, MI skipper Hardik Pandya and coach Mahela Jayawardene were asked how they plan on covering that big gap when their season starts on March 23 (Sunday) against fellow five-time champions Chennai Super Kings at Chepauk.
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“Jasprit Bumrah is with the NCA (National Cricket Academy). He just started the progress. We will wait for feedback. Everything is going well so far. It is a day-to-day process. We hope he can join the team at the earliest. Obviously not having him is a challenge, he is one of the best bowlers in the world. We will have to find ways and it is about opportunities for someone else. We need to find an element early in the season and see what works,” said Jayawardene.
Bumrah is slated to miss the first few rounds of IPL 2025 as the star pacer recovers from a lower back injury that has rendered him out of action since January.
Bumrah picked up the injury on Day 2 of the fifth Test of the Border-Gavaskar Trophy against Australia at Sydney Cricket Ground (SCG) and did not bowl in the second innings.
Bumrah, who had taken 32 wickets from five matches in that series, has been sidelined ever since, and also missed India’s victorious Champions Trophy campaign.
He was named in India’s provisional squad for the 50-over showpiece, but could not attain the optimum fitness level in time, as mystery spinner Varun Chakravarthy was drafted into the side.
“His recuperation is going well. But at this stage it is better to give him some more time to return to peak fitness, considering India’s Test series against England in June,” a source had disclosed to news agency PTI.
IPL 2025 is scheduled to end on May 25.
Earlier, chief selector Ajit Agarkar said that Bumrah had been advised five weeks of complete “off-loading” until the last week of January to reduce the stress on his injured back.
It was a mandatory step because Bumrah had suffered a similar injury in 2023, and had undergone surgery in March that year, which cost him considerable match time.
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