IPL 2025: Bumrah Nears Return but Misses MI’s Next Two Crucial Matches

Mumbai Indians fans are chewing their nails down to the quick as Jasprit Bumrah, their pace spearhead, sits out Friday’s IPL 2025 showdown with Lucknow Super Giants at Wankhede. Word from the dugout suggests he’s also a shaky bet for the next home clash against Royal Challengers Bengaluru on April 7. The trouble started back in January when Bumrah felt a twinge in his lower back during the Sydney Test; a stress niggle that’s kept him in rehab ever since. He’s been sweating it out at the BCCI’s Centre of Excellence in Bengaluru, piling on the overs bit by bit, and insiders say he’s almost ready to face the music with one last fitness hurdle to clear. But until the BCCI docs give him the green light, MI’s bowling attack stays in a holding pattern.

The man’s taking no chances, and who can blame him? With India’s five-Test slog in England looming on June 28, Bumrah wants every kink ironed out before he storms back. Mumbai’s season’s already a mixed bag; three games in, they’ve scraped one win and nursed two losses. Without their star, they tossed the ball to fresh faces like Ashwani Kumar, who snagged four wickets on debut, alongside Vignesh Puthur and Satyanarayana Raju. Trent Boult and Deepak Chahar have been holding the fort, with Hardik Pandya chipping in, but it’s not the same without Bumrah’s fire. Coach Mahela Jayawardene flagged this headache back on March 19, hoping for an April return that’s now slipped out of reach.

Bumrah missed all of IPL 2023 after surgery, and this latest tweak sidelined him for India’s Champions Trophy win last month too. Since his 2013 debut, he’s been MI’s rock, bagging 165 wickets in 133 games. For now, though, the Wankhede faithful are left crossing their fingers, hoping their ace can shake off the rust and roar back soon; because without him, MI’s title chase feels like a long shot.

                                               

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