Mumbai: As India gears up for the ODI series against Australia, stand-in Skipper Hardik Pandya said that the absence of Indian pacer Jasprit Bumrah from the squad will not affect the pace attack department’s strength.
The much-awaited ODI clash between India and Australia is set to unfold from March 17 in Mumbai.
Hardik Pandya who is set to lead the ODI side for the first match in absence of Skipper Rohit Sharma said that “Jasprit hasn’t been around for quite sometime now. In the bowling group, we have been doing a decent job. They’re all experienced now….the number of games they have played.”
Pandya added that “Having Jassi makes a massive difference but to be very honest, we aren’t much bothered because the guys who have taken the role of Jassi, I am quite confident they’ll be doing very well. It gives us good confidence,”.
Bumrah has been out of action since September 2022 owing to a back injury and as a result, missed the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2022 in Australia. The ace pacer completed his rehabilitation at the National Cricket Academy (NCA) in Bengaluru and has been seen bowling in the nets but BCCI have chosen not to rush him back into action.
Indian side is currently facing a crisis in form of injuries with middle-order batsman Shreyas Iyer being ruled out of the upcoming series due to a recurrence of a lower-back injury and will also miss the upcoming IPL season.
Talking about the injuries, stand-in captain Pandya said “I have been in that situation where back could be a problem….we’ll miss him but we have to find solutions if he isn’t around. If he is, he is of course welcome. There’s a lot of time to think about how we can go forward,”.
With Rohit Sharma out of the team for the first match, Pandya confirmed that Ishan Kishan and Shubman Gill will open for the side.
(With Agency Inputs)
Click here for Latest News updates and viral videos on our AI-powered smart news
For viral videos and Latest trends subscribe to NewsMobile YouTube Channel and Follow us on Instagram