In January, BCCI’s decision to withdraw Jasprit Bumrah from a three-match ODI series against Sri Lanka as a precautionary measure raised eyebrows as fans were expecting him to take field after a long layoff. He instead flew to New Zealand, underwent surgery on his troublesome back and even returned home but the BCCI has been tight-lipped about the status of the spearhead’s injury.
On Wednesday, Mumbai Indians captain Rohit Sharma said while addressing the media that Bumrah’s absence will be big blow for the franchise. “It will be a big miss, but we do understand how big his shoes are to fill,” Rohit rued.
Bumrah was seen at the Brabourne Stadium during the final of the Women’s Premier League on March 26 and the conjecture was that he is shaping up well. Bumrah has been out of action since September last year and the BCCI and the team management is optimistic he would regain fitness for the World Cup at home in October-November.
While the hugely successful franchise is looking to plug the Bumrah-sized hole, it is lucky to have in it’s ranks a resurgent Jofra Archer, who can be as destructive as the Indian pacer. ”Jofra obviously is coming off a major injury, he has been playing quite a bit of cricket lately, which is good. He’s in a good space. He’s ready to get up there and perform, which, for us, is a good place to be in,” head coach Mark Boucher said.
Rohit will be captaining Mumbai Indians for the 10th season of the Indian Premier League.
"We know that Bumrah is not available, we've got a couple of guys who can do that job for us" – Rohit Sharma on Jasprit Bumrah's absence
🎥: Mumbai Indians#JaspritBumrah #RohitSharma #MumbaiIndians #MI #IPL2023 pic.twitter.com/sBlfP23NGU
— Siddharth Thakur (@fvosid) March 29, 2023
