Champions Trophy: Why Ajit Agarkar refrained from including Jasprit Bumrah
What's the story
Indian cricket team's star fast bowler Jasprit Bumrah has been ruled out of the upcoming ICC Champions Trophy over fitness concerns.
Although his medical reports indicated successful rehabilitation, the National Cricket Academy (NCA) in Bengaluru couldn't confirm his match readiness for the tournament.
Meanwhile, the final call was left to chief selector Ajit Agarkar who decided against including Bumrah in the squad.
Here's more.
Recovery journey
Bumrah's injury history and rehabilitation process
Notably, Bumrah has a history of back problems. He underwent lower back surgery in 2022.
Recently, he suffered a stress-related injury during the final Test against Australia in Sydney, bowling just 10 overs in the first innings.
Following medical advice, he was given a month's rest, which ruled him out of the entire white-ball leg against England at home.
Rehab details
Bumrah underwent rehabilitation at NCA
After his injury, Bumrah underwent a five-week off-loading period before beginning rehabilitation at the NCA under strength and conditioning trainer Rajnikanth and physio Thulasi.
"The report sent by NCA head Nitin Patel clearly states that he seemed to be okay, it couldn't be concluded whether he would be bowling fit by the time the tournament starts," a top BCCI source told PTI.
Meanwhile, the uncertainty of his bowling fitness by tournament start date led to his exclusion from the squad.
Squad changes
Team management decides to exclude unfit Bumrah
In a meeting in Ahmedabad, chief selector Ajit Agarkar, head coach Gautam Gambhir, and captain Rohit Sharma opted not to include an unfit Bumrah in the Champions Trophy squad.
Instead, they opted for Harshit Rana as Bumrah's replacement.
Meanwhile, along with Rana, spinner Varun Chakaravarthy was also added to the squad replacing opener Yashasvi Jaiswal.
This decision was made on February 11, the deadline for finalizing squads for the Champions Trophy 2025.
Statement
BCCI's official statement on Bumrah
The BCCI issued a statement, saying, "Fast bowler Jasprit Bumrah has been ruled out of the 2025 ICC Champions Trophy due to a lower back injury. The Men's Selection Committee has named Harshit Rana as Bumrah's replacement."
"Team India have also named Varun Chakaravarthy in the squad. The spinner will replace Yashasvi Jaiswal who was initially named in the provisional squad," the statement added.
Information
India's final squad for Champions Trophy
India's squad for Champions Trophy: Rohit Sharma (captain), Shubman Gill, Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer, KL Rahul, Hardik Pandya, Axar Patel, Washington Sundar, Kuldeep Yadav, Harshit Rana, Mohammad Shami, Arshdeep Singh, Varun Chakravarthy, Rishabh Pant, and Ravindra Jadeja.