Watch: Bumrah back at his formidable best as star India pacer bowls full-throttle ahead of return in Ireland series
It has been close of a year since world cricket last saw Jasprit Bumrah in action. Down with a recurring back injury, Bumrah missed all of India’s crucial matches including the Asia Cup and T20 World Cup last year and the WTC final last June while also sitting out of the whole of IPL 2023 season. But the star India pacer is all set for a return in India colours when a second-string side takes on Ireland in a T20I series later this month.
Jasprit Bumrah is all set to make an India return later this month
Bumrah had shown the first signs of his injury in the summer of 2022 which saw him miss the Asia Cup. With World T20 around, BCCI rushed him into a comeback, but it caused more damage when the right-arm fast bowler was seen in action in the home series against Australia. Bumrah aggravated his injury during the contest which then saw him miss the rest of India’s fixtures until August 2023.
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Next week, Bumrah will leave India for Ireland as part of a three-match T20I series which begins from August 18 onwards till 23rd of that month with all matches slated to be played at the Malahide Cricket Club. Ahead of the big series and the massive comeback, Bumrah was seen at his daunting best at the nets in the National Cricket Academy in Bengaluru, where he has been through the majority of his rehabilitation period. He showed perfect signs ahead of the series as he bowled at express pace.
Bumrah in a new role
Besides the talk about his return in India jersey, the discussion also remains around the new responsibility that the 29-year-old has been handed. Bumrah will be leading the Indian side for the first time in his white-ball career. Previously, he led the team only once, in that rescheduled England Test match last year of the 2020 series where he had picked five wickets in two innings.
Bumrah, will however, be without the likes of the senior players in Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli. In fact, the only players to travel from the ongoing West Indies assignment to Ireland will be Tilak Varma, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Sanju Samson, Mukesh Kumar, Ravi Bishnoi and Arshdeep Singh.
