Last Updated on 1 month by Charbel Coorey
Jasprit Bumrah has been officially ruled out of the 2025 Champions Trophy due to a stress reaction in his back suffered during the Border-Gavaskar Trophy in Australia. As reported by ESPNcricinfo, Bumrah was asked to rest for five weeks following the series and is yet to fully recover from the discomfort despite scans not showing anything major.
Bumrah’s absence represents a huge gap for India to fill in their quest to seal their second ICC trophy in eight months after winning the T20 World Cup in June 2024. Bumrah was crucial in India’s triumph in the USA and West Indies, taking 15 wickets at an average of 8.26 and economy of 4.17, including a matchwinning performance under pressure in the final against South Africa.
India with huge gap to fill as Jasprit Bumrah ruled out of 2025 Champions Trophy
India have quality death overs pretty much guaranteed when Bumrah is in the XI. Former coach Ravi Shastri believes India’s chances of winning the Champions Trophy reduce by a third with no Jasprit Bumrah available.
“Bumrah not fit will reduce India’s chances [of winning the Champions Trophy] by 30%, literally by 30-35%,” Shastri said on The ICC Review earlier this month.
“With a fully fit Bumrah playing, you are guaranteed of those death overs. It would’ve been a different ball game altogether.”
Since his ODI debut in 2016, Bumrah concedes a remarkable 5.78 per over between overs 41 and 50. Given the sharp rise in 400+ totals as the influence of T20 cricket has continued to grow, Bumrah’s numbers are simply staggering.
In fact, Bumrah has been outstanding in all phases of an innings in ODIs:
| Phase | Wickets | Average | Economy |
| Overs 1-10 | 45 | 28.5 | 3.96 |
| Overs 11-40 | 34 | 33.7 | 4.54 |
| Overs 41-50 | 70 | 15.4 | 5.78 |
However, India can hold hope of winning the tournament even without their talisman. Their batting depth can either give them plenty of runs to defend or the ability to chase larger totals. Also, a number of teams are missing star players themselves, most notably Australia.
But, the decision by India to not pick Mohammed Siraj has not sat well with some fans. In his ODI career, Siraj has taken 41 wickets between overs 1 and 10 at an average of 18.9 and economy of 4.38. Instead, the team management opted for Harshit Rana with an eye for more wickets in the middle overs.
India’s campaign begins against Bangladesh in Dubai on February 20. They remain favourites to take out the tournament as their batting remains strong and their spinners possess plenty of quality.
Also, the output of other teams is up in the air. Australia are without their top three fast bowlers. Pakistan will be without Saim Ayub and the makeup of their bowling attack remains in question. England have struggled in ODI cricket over the past couple of years, while South Africa have the mental burden of getting over the line in an ICC tournament.
The leaves New Zealand, Afghanistan and Bangladesh. The Black Caps have injury concerns of their own in Lockie Ferguson and Rachin Ravindra. Bangladesh are facing an uphill task with experienced players no longer around. Afghanistan are a dangerous team, but whether they have the depth to test India in the business end of the tournament might be a bridge too far.
So, while a tournament victory for India will be more difficult to achieve without Bumrah, it is possible. Should Rohit Sharma’s team reach the final, the match will be played in the UAE on Sunday March 9. Time will tell how they go.
