Team India's preparation for the upcoming T20 World Cup received a major jolt earlier this week as premier speedster Jasprit Bumrah was ruled out of the ongoing three-match T20I series against South Africa. It is not clear whether Bumrah would be available for the T20 World Cup, which is slated to begin on October 16. Ahead of the second T20I against South Africa, head coach Rahul Dravid provided an update on Bumrah, saying the pacer has gone to the National Cricket Academy and the management is waiting for an official word.
"So, as of now, officially he has been ruled out of the T20 series against South Africa. He has gone to the NCA and we are waiting for an official confirmation on the next steps. As of now, officially he is only ruled out of this series, and we will see what happens in the next 2-3 days but once we get an official confirmation, then we will be able to share that," said Dravid during a press conference on Saturday.
"Like I said, I don't go deeply into the medical reports, I rely on the experts to tell me what it is. They ruled him out of this series and he is being assessed. You will know in due course what happens in the future. Till the time he is not officially ruled out, we will always be hopeful and we will hope for the best," he added.
On Friday, the All-India Senior Selection Committee named Mohammed Siraj as a replacement for the injured Bumrah.
Bumrah had recently made a comeback from injury in the T20I series against Australia. He had missed more than two months of action due to his back injury and on his return, he could be a part of only two games.
While the first game on his return saw him returning figures of 1 for 23 in two overs, the second game saw him leaking 50 runs for no wicket in 4 overs.