Indian fast bowlers Jasprit Bumrah and Akash Deep are still recovering from their respective injuries, delaying their return to competitive cricket. As a result, both have missed the early matches of the ongoing 2025 Indian Premier League (IPL) while continuing their rehabilitation at the BCCI’s Centre of Excellence in Bengaluru.
Bumrah has been sidelined since suffering a back injury during the final Border-Gavaskar Test in Sydney in January. His absence also extended to Team India’s triumphant 2025 Champions Trophy campaign in the UAE. Initially, Bumrah was expected to make his comeback in Mumbai Indians’ (MI) first home match of the season against Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) on March 31.
Since he hadn’t joined the squad yet, MI relied on youngster Ashwani Kumar, who impressed with a four-wicket haul in their dominant Wankhede win. Meanwhile, videos of Jasprit Bumrah bowling in the nets surfaced, boosting the cricketing community.
However, a ‘Times of India’ report states that he isn’t bowling at full intensity due to physio concerns over his back injury. Though ‘clinically fit,’ his workload is being carefully managed.
“Bumrah’s injury is a bit more serious. The medical team wants to ensure he doesn’t suffer a stress fracture. Bumrah himself is being careful. He is bowling at the CoE but it could take longer to get back in full swing. No definite timeline has been set yet, but one hopes he gets back by mid-April,” a source told the Times of India.
Akash Deep’s return to IPL 2025 delayed by a week
The absence of the right-arm pacer at the start of IPL 2025 was a significant setback for the Lucknow Super Giants (LSG), who were already dealing with an injury crisis involving Avesh Khan and Mayank Yadav. With their first-choice pacers unavailable, LSG relied on Shardul Thakur and Prince Yadav as their lead seamers until Avesh Khan regained fitness and returned for the second match onward.
Akash Deep has been sidelined since the Boxing Day Test in Melbourne in December 2024, missing the fifth Border-Gavaskar Trophy (BGT) Test due to a back injury. With his return now postponed by a week, he is expected to be available for selection midway through the tournament.
Both Akash Deep and Bumrah remain on the selectors’ radar for the crucial five-match Test series against England following the 2025 IPL season.
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