No clarity on Bumrah's comeback

When Jasprit Bumrah broke down during Mumbai Indians’ opening game against Delhi Capitals on Sunday and failed to come and bat, the franchise was not the only one sweating about the extent of the pacer’s injury.

The Indian team management and cricket fans across the country were deeply worried about the condition of the pacer — the undisputed leader of the country’s pace pack and a vital cog in the World Cup plans. Thankfully, the injury doesn’t seem serious at the moment and Bumrah, who did some basic training on Tuesday, bowled close to 45 minutes at the Chinnaswamy Stadium on Wednesday. Looking very relaxed and in no obvious pain, Bumrah then padded up and had a few hits as well.

Mumbai Indians’ media manager Leeladhar Singh, speaking on the sidelines of the pre-match press conference, said the franchise is very delighted at the speed of Bumrah’s recovery. “Bumrah, as you’ll saw, yesterday he was on the field. He did his warm-up as well as practice. He’s recovered really well and looks fit.”

When asked if Bumrah will play Thursday’s match against Royal Challengers Bangalore, Singh refused to divulge anything. “We’ll access (him) after today’s session.”

In another welcome boost for the three-time champions, Lasith Malinga, who got the much-needed NOC from his cricket board SLC, was set to join the team on Wednesday night.