Jasprit Bumrah has been included as a last-minute addition to India’s three-match ODI series against Sri Lanka starting January 10. Bumrah, India’s premier pacer, was first sidelined due to a stress fracture in his back ahead of the Asia Cup but seems to have fully recovered after a long rest and undergoing intense rehabilitation at the NCA.
In the last week of December, when India’s squad for the Sri Lanka series was announced, Bumrah was not included with reports saying that the BCCI was not keen on rushing the India pacer, back but the big breaking on Tuesday afternoon suggests that the board, team management are satisfied with the 28-year-old’s progress and getting him to return as early as possible in a World Cup year is the best step forward.
“The All-India Senior Selection Committee has included pacer Jasprit Bumrah in India’s ODI squad for the upcoming Mastercard 3-match ODI series against Sri Lanka,” the BCCI stated in a release. “Bumrah was out of cricketing action since September 2022 and was also ruled out of the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup due to a back injury. The pacer has undergone rehabilitation and has been declared fit by the National Cricket Academy (NCA). He will be joining the Team India ODI squad soon.”
However, whether Bumrah will immediately be slotted back into the Playing XI remains to be seen. Ideally, if he has been added to the squad, he will most likely play, but will it from the first game itself, will be a question captain Rohit Sharma, coach Rahul Dravid and Bumrah himself will be able to answer better. With the likes of Mohammed Shami, Mohammed Siraj, Arshdeep Singh and Umran Malik already present to shepherd India’s pace department, Bumrah coming on board promises to strengthen the already-formidable bowling unit.
