Mahela Jayawardene, the head coach of the Mumbai Indians (MI), provided an update on Jasprit Bumrah's condition during a press conference in Mumbai on Wednesday, ahead of the 2025 Indian Premier League season. With the fast bowler expected to miss the initial matches for Mumbai, Jayawardene acknowledged the situation as a "challenge," but noted that Bumrah "is in good spirits" as he continues his recovery at the BCCI's Centre of Excellence in Bengaluru.

"Bumrah has just begun his rehabilitation process. We need to await feedback from the BCCI medical team regarding his progress," Jayawardene stated. "Currently, everything appears to be going well, but it is assessed daily. He remains in good spirits. His absence presents a challenge, as he is among the world's top bowlers and has been an exceptional player for us over the years.

"We will need to wait or look for opportunities for others to rise to the occasion. That is my perspective. This situation allows us to experiment with different strategies and see how they perform. The beginning of the season provides us with that opportunity."

Why will Bumrah miss MI's first few games?

The India star suffered a back injury during the final Test match of the Border-Gavaskar Trophy series against Australia in January and has yet to recover. The stress-related back injury also caused him to miss India's Champions Trophy campaign in Dubai. ESPNCricinfo reported earlier last week that Bumrah will join the Mumbai Indians squad in early April.

However, Mumbai do have their backup ready in the pace department, comprising Trent Boult, Deepak Chahar, Reece Topley and Corbin Bosch (replacement for Lizard Williams). They also have captain Hardik Pandya, the allrounder, and the uncapped Ashwani Kumar, Satyanarayana Raju, Arjun Tendulkar and Raj Angad Bawa. However, Bumrah will likely be missed in the death overs, given that both Chahar and Boult are powerplay specialists.

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