Indian stand-in captain Jasprit Bumrah did not take the field on the third day of the fifth and final Test match of the ongoing Border-Gavaskar Trophy series after the Indian camp claimed that the fast bowler was suffering from “spasms in the back”. However, speculation is rife that the injury could be much worse than the Indian team claimed, with former Australian captain Ricky Ponting saying the claims of “back spasms” were just a screen for smoke.
Bumrah had left the field on the second day of the match and was taken to hospital by an ambulance, while reports emerged that he had been taken for a CT scan. However, a senior journalist, Peter Lalor, revealed on Sunday morning that Bumrah went to the hospital to receive an injection as a scanner was available to the Indian team SCG. “My mail says he didn’t do a scan,” Lalor told Channel 7. “They have scanners in the changing rooms. He went to give himself an injection. Probably cortisone.
Bumrah had undergone surgery in 2023 for a stress fracture in his back and so India would be very cautious with current concerns over the Champions Trophy a month later. “He had back spasms,” teammate Prasidh Krishna told reporters at the end of the second day in Sydney. “He has had scans so the medical team is monitoring him. We will know (if he will continue to play) when the medical team contacts us.
Ponting fears Bumrah’s injury could be worse
As Bumrah didn’t even bowl during the third day’s warm-up in Sydney, Ponting suggested the Indian camp was probably not being completely honest about his injury. “It seemed like a real worry to me,” Ponting told Channel 7. “They said back spasms when he came back (to the SCG).
“[But] he runs up the stairs. He ran off the field. These are not signs or symptoms of back spasms. I’m crossing my fingers and hoping that’s the case. I would love to see him participate in this game more and not be out for an extended period of time like he was with the stress fractures a few years ago.
