Indian Cricket: 5 questions that would be answered in 2020

#4 Can Hardik Pandya and Jasprit Bumrah hit the ground running after injuries?

Bumrah has been nursing a stress fracture

Ever since the 2019 World Cup, Hardik Pandya has not played an ODI for India whereas his last T20I appearance came against South Africa on the 22nd of September, 2019.

Subsequently, he underwent a back surgery to fix an ailment that had been plaguing him for a while. And, he seems to have gotten back to fitness only recently, although he still is a bit short of being match-fit.

However, India are hopeful that the all-rounder would return in time for the second half of their tour to New Zealand, meaning that he would get some time under the cricketing sun before the frenzied IPL takes over.

Yet, as plenty of players would testify, getting over a back injury and hitting the ground running isn’t a particularly enviable task. And, though his batting might not suffer as much, it is probably his bowling attributes India might be worried about.

Over the past few decades, the Men In Blue have searched fervently for a pace-bowling all-rounder and with Pandya in the mix, several felt that those endeavours had borne fruit. However, if the Mumbai Indians right-hander is unable to contribute with both suits, his value could diminish, meaning that India would again have to go looking for an all-rounder capable of lending balance.

As for Jasprit Bumrah, the pacer has captured the imagination extraordinarily and has swiftly catapulted himself as perhaps the premier fast bowler on the planet. Unsurprisingly, India have missed his wicket-taking abilities whenever he hasn’t been able to take the field.

Thus, his importance to the Indian team can’t be overstated enough. However, akin to Pandya, he too would be charting a comeback trajectory from a stress fracture in the back, meaning that he might have to be eased into the fold.

And, while 1.2 billion people might not even want to envisage a situation without Bumrah in the side, it could be a real possibility, especially if his injury hampers him from hitting the heights only he is capable of.