Fast bowler Jasprit Bumrah, who was supposed to make his comeback to the India team after a lengthy injury lay-off, got ruled out of the ODI series against Sri Lanka last month.

On the eve of the opening ODI, BCCI issued a statement, citing that Bumrah won’t take part in the 50-over series as he needs some more time to build bowling resilience.

Subsequently, the Indian pace spearhead checked into the NCA and started rehabbing again for his stress reaction to the back.

Meanwhile, a TOI report claims that Bumrah has started bowling again in the nets at NCA, raising hopes of him featuring in the upcoming Border-Gavaskar Trophy, starting February 9 in Nagpur.

While Bumrah hasn’t been picked for the first two Tests against Australia, he is likely to return to action for the final two Tests of the Border-Gavaskar Trophy 2023.

Dharamshala (March 1-5) and Ahmedabad (March 9-13) are slated to host the third and fourth Tests, respectively.

"Yes, Bumrah has started bowling in the nets. Let's hope all goes well and he's declared fit," TOI quoted a reliable source as saying.

Meanwhile, middle-order batter Shreyas Iyer, who is recovering from back spasms at NCA, is still in contention for the first Test against Australia.

"There's very much a possibility that he will recover, as the first Test starts only on February 9 (in Nagpur). He's suffering from a stiff back, not a major problem. He will try his level best to be fit for the series. No one ruled him out yet-certainly not the BCCI's medical team at NCA," a source informed TOI.

The forthcoming Border-Gavaskar Trophy is important for India with respect to the WTC final. The Rohit Sharma-led side needs to win at least three Tests in the series to qualify for the final, due to be held at the Oval in June 2023.

(With TOI Inputs)