Jasprit Bumrah fitness update: When will star pacer return for Mumbai Indians?

Jasprit Bumrah is nearing his return after missing the start of the IPL for Mumbai Indians, and is awaiting fitness clearance for the NCA.

Jasprit Bumrah fitness update: When will star pacer return for Mumbai Indians?

Jasprit Bumrah is expected to make his return to play for Mumbai Indians in the 2025 IPL season. (via Times of India)

Mumbai Indians star pacer Jasprit Bumrah is expected to return to action soon for the five-time IPL winners, after having missed the first few matches for the team. The 31-year-old speedster might however, miss out on MI’s upcoming matches against RCB and DC.

Jasprit Bumrah has remained out of action since January 2025, after having suffered a stress-related lower back injury while playing for the Indian Test side. He sustained the injury in the fourth Test of India’s five-match red-ball series against Australia, at the Sydney Cricket Ground. India went on to suffer a humiliating defeat at the hands of the Australians, losing the Border-Gavaskar Trophy, 3-1.

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It is not the first time that the 31-year-old pacer has remained out on the sidelines for a prolonged period. He was out of action for 11 months between September 2022 and August 2023 due to a similar lower back injury, and even underwent surgery for the same. Bumrah’s recent injury kept him away from India’s triumphant 2025 Champions Trophy squad, despite being initially named in the provisional 15-man squad.

Jasprit Bumrah has been recovering well for over the past few weeks at BCCI’s Center of Excellence in Bengaluru. He has been gradually building up his bowling workload and is close to completing his final round of fitness tests. However, the star Indian pacer will only be able to rejoin the Mumbai Indians squad after he receives a clearance from the BCCI medical team.

Bumrah has himself been cautious about making an early comeback, with his eyes set on remaining fit for India’s upcoming five-match Test series in England, later this year. Mumbai Indians’ head coach Mahela Jayawardene also spoke about Bumrah’s availability ahead of the start of the season, and even admitted that it would be a challenge for the team to play without their star bowler.

Increasing hopes for MI, the 31-year-old is expected to soon be a part of the MI camp, by the 15th of April. Moreover, in his absence the team has fared poorly, losing three out of its four opening encounters. Deepak Chahar and Trent Boult have diligently taken charge of the team’s pace attack, while the likes of youngsters Ashwani Kumar and Satyanarayana Raju have provided additional support. 

Meanwhile, Bumrah’s return could boost the MI bowling attack, owing to the fact that the 31-year-old has been a vital cog in the Mumbai Indians’ five IPL triumphs. He has taken 165 wickets in 133 IPL matches, all for the Mumbai-based franchise.

Suryakumar Yadav joins Rohit Sharma and Jasprit Bumrah in the elite list of players to make 100 appearances for MI

Indian T20I captain Suryakumar Yadav etched his name in history books by becoming the eighth player ever to make 100 IPL appearances for Mumbai Indians. His achieved his historic feat in a match against Lucknow Super Giants, at the Ekana Stadium.

Suryakumar Yadav 100 matches
Suryakumar Yadav became the eighth player behind teammate Rohit Sharma and Jasprit Bumrah to make 100 IPL appearances for MI. (via Instagram)

The 34-year-old batter became only the eighth MI player to amass 100 IPL appearances. Suryakumar Yadav made his debut for the team in the 2012 IPL season, before going on play for Kolkata Knight Riders from 2014 and 2017. He returned to MI in 2018, and has since then been a pivotal part of the team. He has scored over 3000 runs for the team, at an average of 35 and a blistering strike rate of 145.99.

Meanwhile, the only seven other players have featured in more than 100 matches for MI, over the last 18 seasons. Rohit Sharma is the most capped player with 215 matches. He is followed by Kieron Pollard (189), Harbhajan Singh (136), Jasprit Bumrah (133), Lasith Malinga (122), Ambati Rayudu (114) and Hardik Pandya (109).