Ace Mumbai Indians (MI) pacer Jasprit Bumrah is set to miss a few games for the franchise at the start of the IPL 2025 season. The new IPL season 18 begins on March 22 with Mumbai Indians playing their first game on March 23 against Chennai Super Kings (CSK) in Chennai.

The reason behind Jasprit Bumrah’s delay is that he is recovering from the stress-related injury in his lower back, which he suffered during the SCG Test in Australia early this year. Bumrah was eventually ruled out of the Champions Trophy, which India won earlier this month. This is the first time Bumrah has suffered a back problem since his surgery in March 2023.

While announcing the Champions Trophy squad in January, India's chief selector, Ajit Agarkar, stated that the BCCI medical staff had requested Bumrah to rest for at least five weeks.

Bumrah was named to India's tentative roster for the Champions Trophy, which began on February 19. He traveled to Bengaluru for more scans in early February, but he continued to suffer difficulty and was not picked for the final team.

As he continues his recuperation, Bumrah will miss a few starting games for MI and is expected to join the squad by early April, subject to clearance from the BCCI medical board. MI has three games scheduled in March.

MI's first two IPL 2025 matchups are away: on March 23, they face the Chennai Super Kings (CSK) in Chennai, and on March 29, they play the Gujarat Titans (GT) in Ahmedabad. MI's first home encounter occurs two days later, on March 31, when they welcome the Kolkata Knight Riders.

They will then play two matches in the first week of April: Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) in Lucknow on April 4 and Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) at home on April 7.

His peculiar action has made Bumrah vulnerable to back problems, necessitating the BCCI medical team, selectors, and team think tank to balance his workload and ensure that he receives adequate rest between series/tournaments.

(ESPNCricinfo inputs)