India vs Sri Lanka: Jasprit Bumrah's comeback delayed, fast bowler ruled out of ODI series

India fast bowler Jasprit Bumrah has reportedly been withdrawn from the upcoming One-Day International (ODI) series against Sri Lanka.

The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) does not want to rush with Bumrah's return as the pacer is returning from a back injury that had ruled him out in the last few months. Team India was also without Bumrah for the T20 World Cup 2022 in Australia, where they suffered a 10-wicket loss against England in the semi-final.

Bumrah is not among the players to have reached Guwahati, the venue of the first ODI between India and Sri Lanka, according to a report in CricBuzz.

The BCCI had earlier said that the 29-year-old fast bowler was added to the ODI on the recommendation of the all-India selection committee. "The All-India Senior Selection Committee has included pacer Jasprit Bumrah in India's ODI squad for the upcoming Mastercard 3-match ODI series against Sri Lanka," the BCCI had said in a Jan. 3 media release.

Bumrah has been out of action since September 2022. "The pacer has undergone rehabilitation and has been declared fit by the National Cricket Academy (NCA). He will be joining the Team India ODI squad soon," the BCCI had further said.

However, the NCA staff has now decided not to rush with Bumrah's return keeping in mind India's upcoming big Test series at home against Australia and the ICC Cricket World Cup later in the year.

The Cricbuzz report has further revealed that Bumrah could play in India's ODI and T20I series against New Zealand. The BlackCaps are due to travel to India for the series, which is scheduled to go underway on Jan. 18.

While Bumrah has been ruled out of the Sri Lanka ODIs, other members of the Indian team, including skipper Rohit Sharma, vice-captain KL Rahul, Virat Kohli and Shreyas Iyer, who were not part of the T20I series, have joined the squad in Guwahati.

India's updated squad for Sri Lanka ODIs: Rohit Sharma (Captain), Shubman Gill, Virat Kohli, Suryakumar Yadav, Shreyas Iyer, KL Rahul (wk), Ishan Kishan (wk), Hardik Pandya (VC), Washington Sundar, Yuzvendra Chahal, Kuldeep Yadav, Axar Patel, Mohd. Shami, Mohd. Siraj, Umran Malik and Arshdeep Singh.

The first ODI between India and Sri Lanka will be played on Tuesday at Barsapara Cricket Stadium, Guwahati. The second and the third ODIs will be played on Jan. 12 and 15 in Kolkata and Thiruvananthapuram respectively.