Bumrah has remained out of action since the October 2022, missing out on the T20 World Cup as and World Test Championship Final. ( ICC/File) Jasprit Bumrah’s back injury has been the talk of Indian cricket since last year. A recurring injury that’s been bugging him since the India tour of England in July and has seen him miss out on professional cricket since October last year.
With a home ODI World Cup on horizon, there have been doubts over Bumrah’s fitness in the first team leading up to the tournament and Asia Cup ahead of it. Former India World Cup-winning skipper Kapil Dev has shared his views on the 29-year-old and even Rishabh Pant’s absence from the national side ahead of the marquee event.
“What happened to Bumrah? He started working with so much belief, but if he’s not there (in World Cup semi-final/final)… we wasted time on him. Rishabh Pant… such a great cricketer. Had he been there, our Test cricket would’ve been better,” Kapil told The Wire.
Pant has also remained out of action following his car accident at the turn of the year and has made “significant progress in his rehabilitation” as stated in a recent press release by the Board for Control of Cricket in India (BCCI).
“God is kind, it’s not as if I never got injured. But today, they are playing 10 months in a year. Give a benefit of doubt to that, but everybody has to look after themselves. IPL is a great thing but IPL can spoil you also. Because, a little bit of injuries and you will play in IPL. A little bit of injuries, you won’t play for India. You would take a break. I’m being very open about it,” the former India all-rounder added. “If you have a small injury, you would play in IPL if it’s an important game. At this stage, cricket board has to understand how much cricket they should play. That is the bottomline. If today, you have resources, money, but you don’t have three or five-year calendars. There’s something wrong with cricket board there.”
The Indian Express has learned that the team selectors are looking to include the 29-year-old for the Asia Cup in September and that the progression he has made in the last couple of weeks means he could travel to Ireland next month with a second-string India team.
The Indian team is currently on tour of the West Indies. Having lost the second ODI against the hosts on Saturday and with the series level at 1-1, India will play the decider on Tuesday in Trinidad.
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