The selectors of India, led by Ajit Agarkar, will meet on August 19 to complete the 15-person team for the Asia Cup 2025 from 9 September. Jasprit Bumrah has told the panel that it is ready and available to play in the tournament.
India opened their campaign against the VAE on 10 September before a controversial collision against Pakistan on September 14 in Dubai. Group A includes India, VAE, Pakistan and Oman. Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka and Hong Kong Form Group B.
Bumrah’s fitness has been under the scanner in recent months. During the Anderson-Retulkar trophy against England, he only played three of the five tests as part of the workload management. Yet he claimed two five-wicket distance and bent almost 120 overs before he rested for the last test in the oval.
The fast bowler has also had a troubled run with injuries. A back cramp in the last test of the Border-Gavaskar trophy of 2024-25 against Australia kept him out of the Champions Trophy 2025, which then won India. Earlier this year he also missed the IPL opening matches for Mumbai Indians.
Some experts believe that India should look further if he can no longer stay on the field. Former cricketer sanjay manjrekar wrote,
“If he can play no more than two games in a row or sometimes even more than one, he should not be your front line. Players who are fit fit, enthusiastically, enjoy playing and performing, have to be chosen for me every day over a very skilled player.”
He added: “This is not an idealistic position to take, but it is the right thing for the long -term health of a team sport.”
For now, the selectors will weigh all options, but the availability of Bumrah gives the pace attack of India a large boost prior to a challenging Asian cup campaign.
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