The fears and speculations have finally come true—Jasprit Bumrah, arguably the best fast bowler in the world right now, has been ruled out of the Champions Trophy. This is a huge setback for India ahead of the eight-team global tournament.
On June 18, India announced their 15-member squad for the Champions Trophy, which included Bumrah. He was also part of the squad for the ongoing ODI series against England. It was expected that he would regain match fitness by playing the final ODI.
However, due to a lack of improvement in his fitness, he has been withdrawn from the squad.
The BCCI had stated that they were willing to wait until the last moment for their star pacer. However, according to reports from Cricinfo, a recent scan of Bumrah’s back at the BCCI’s Centre of Excellence in Bengaluru did not yield positive results. As a result, he will not be returning to bowling action anytime soon.
Previously, Bumrah had missed the 2022 T20 World Cup in Australia due to injury. This marks the second time he has been ruled out of an ICC tournament. In his absence, young pacer Harshit Rana has been added to India’s squad. The right-arm pacer played in the first two ODIs against England.
Bumrah last played in the Sydney Test in January, where he single-handedly carried India’s bowling attack against Australia. Unfortunately, he couldn’t bowl in the final innings due to an injury.
Despite that, he finished the series in stellar form, taking 32 wickets and winning the Player of the Series award. He was initially given a five-week rest due to his back injury, which was supposed to end in the third week of February.
India is placed in Group A of the Champions Trophy alongside Bangladesh. The two teams will face off in their opening match on February 20 at the Dubai International Cricket Stadium. India will then take on Pakistan on February 23 and New Zealand on March 2.
