In a major blow to Mumbai Indians, injured fast bowler Jasprit Bumrah is set to miss the entire Indian Premier League (IPL) to be held in April-May.
The 29-year-old India spearhead has been undergoing rehabilitation for a long time to rectify stress reaction in the lower back. The BCCI medical team has now decided not risk his recovery with the aim of getting him fully fit for the World Test Championship final in June and the ODI World Cup which India host in October-November.
It is learnt that Bumrah’s target was to play in the second half of IPL. In a first step towards his return, he was expected to play for Reliance 1 in the DY Patil T20 Cup held last week in Navi Mumbai. However, due to a recurring niggle, a decision was taken to postpone his comeback.
It has been a frustrating wait for the star pacer, who last played for India in a T20I against Australia on September 25. Undergoing rehab at the National Cricket Academy, Bengaluru since November, he had resumed bowling in the nets by mid-December. However, he is now taking a break in Mumbai while medical experts do their assessment on how best to plan his recovery.
As the rehab has gone on for a long time, Bumrah was given a proposal to undergo surgery. It is learnt that the bowler is not keen as it is not a compulsory surgery, unlike in the case of a fracture. If Bumrah does undergo surgery, it would mean at least a three-month break, which could rule him out of the World Cup.
Since suffering a back injury last August, Bumrah has been able to play only two T20Is, against Australia in late September. He has missed a series of big events including the Asia Cup and T20 World Cup, and the ongoing Test series against Australia.
