After BCCI president Sourav Ganguly, Team India head coach Rahul Dravid too has refuted reports of Jasprit Bumrah getting ruled out of the upcoming T20 World Cup, saying the speedster has gone to the National Cricket Academy for now and that results still are awaited.
Ahead of the second T20I against the Proteas in Guwahati, Dravid did confirm the fact that Bumrah so far has been ruled out of the remainder of the series after being rested for the opening game in Thiruvananthapuram.
“So, as of now, officially he has been ruled out of the T20 series against South Africa. He has gone to the NCA and we are waiting for an official confirmation on the next steps. As of now, officially he is only ruled out of this series, and we will see what happens in the next 2-3 days but once we get an official confirmation, then we will be able to share that,” Dravid said during a press conference on Saturday.
Read: Bumrah not ruled out of T20 World Cup yet, clarifies BCCI president Ganguly
Dravid added that till the time he was in the academy, the team would be hoping for the best.
“Like I said, I don’t go deeply into the medical reports, I rely on the experts to tell me what it is. They ruled him out of this series and he is being assessed. You will know in due course what happens in the future. Till the time he is not officially ruled out, we will always be hopeful and we will hope for the best,” added Dravid.
Bumrah had returned from a long injury layoff during the T20I series against Australia, missing the Asia Cup along the way, and had been rested for the opening T20I against South Africa. Reports then began doing the rounds of the Indian pace spearhead getting ruled out of the ICC showpiece T20 event later this month due to a back stress fracture.
The BCCI however, remained mum on his trip to Australia while confirming his exit from the remainder of the South Africa T20Is, with Mohammed Siraj being named his replacement.
India have already lost star all-rounder Ravindra Jadeja to a knee injury, and Bumrah’s absence will be a real body blow to the Men in Blue’s hopes of ending their nine-year wait for a world title. India had suffered the ignominy of bowing out of the competition in the group stage in last year’s edition in the UAE after defeats to Pakistan and New Zealand.
Read all the Latest News, Trending News, Cricket News, Bollywood News, India News and Entertainment News here. Follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.