Jasprit Bumrah set to return as teams for Sri Lanka and Australia series to be named on December 23

Bumrah has not played for India since the away tour of West Indies.

Jasprit Bumrah | Getty Images

Jasprit Bumrah will be in focus as the MSK Prasad-led selection committee will on Monday (December 23) pick the squads for the T20Is against Sri Lanka and ODIs against Australia in January. 

After being away for almost four months, Bumrah recently reported to Indian team's nets in Vizag and bowled at full pace without any discomfort. It now appears that the speedster will either be picked for the series against Sri Lanka or Australia.

"The team for both series will be picked on Monday afternoon in Delhi. The selectors will pick teams for both series. In all likelihood, this will be the last selection meeting chaired by MSK Prasad," a BCCI source told PTI on conditions of anonymity.

READ ALSO: Sourav Ganguly confirms Jasprit Bumrah will go through fitness test at the NCA

It is more likely that Australia ODIs will mark Bumrah's return to competitive cricket, having recovered from a back stress fracture.

However, since Bumrah didn't do his rehabilitation at the BCCI's National Cricket Academy (NCA), he was asked by NCA director Rahul Dravid to get his clearance from where he spent in his recovery time.

"In case of Bumrah, Indian team physio Nitin Patel and trainer Nick Webb checked him in Visakhapatnam (earlier this week). He bowled full tilt over there. Since Australia series starts on January 14, he could just play a Ranji game and get some overs under his belt. In any case, it will also depend on how Virat (Kohli) looks at it," the source said.

Skipper Virat Kohli is expected to join the meeting via video conference. He scored 85 in India's 4-wicket win in the ODI series decider against West Indies in Cuttack.

Deepak Chahar's fitness will be a cause of concern after he was ruled out of the third ODI against the West Indies. Shikhar Dhawan is also returning to full fitness but might be asked to play some domestic cricket to get back into the groove.

(With PTI inputs)

 
 

By Saurabh Malhotra - 22 Dec, 2019

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