Jasprit Bumrah 'twists ankle'; India pray as pacer grimaces in pain, clutches his leg: 'He looks really uncomfortable'

Hindustan Times

3 days ago

Team India and Shubman Gill are keeping their fingers crossed after pace spearhead Jasprit Bumrah hurt himself on Day 3 of the ongoing 4th Test between India and England at the Old Trafford cricket stadium in Manchester on Friday. Suspicions that something wasn't right with Bumrah arose when he did not return to bowl after completing just one over with the second new ball. As Mohammed Siraj and Anshul Kamboj resumed proceedings, the immediate question on everybody's mind was: Where is Bumrah? Is he not on the field? Jasprit Bumrah did some damage to his ankle.(AP)
Well, he wasn't. After the commentators revealed that he indeed had gone off the field to 'receive some treatment', it was a regular affair. Right? But when overs kept passing and Joe Root and Ben Stokes blunted the new ball, Bumrah's absence started to sting even more. Finally, the camera captured Bumrah sitting just behind the boundary boards with the rest of his teammates, with a small grimace on his face. The scenes weren't as serious as when he left the Sydney Test in an ambulance, but definitely concerning enough to cause a few worries.
Also Read: Follow India vs England 4th Test Day 3
Just as publications began to get the Bumrah peg out, he was thankfully back on the field. But as the next over began, he looked in discomfort while fielding near the boundary. Bumrah's face told the story. He was far from being 100 percent. He clutched his ankle and winced in pain. Surely, something was off.
"It's a good sign that Bumrah is back on the field, but it's a bad sign that he went off the field. However, it looks like he is grimacing a little bit. Doesn't look comfortable; he is reaching down at his left ankle. Keep those fingers crossed for India's sake that he can come back and bowl straightaway. He has been off for a few overs now. I think he will probably have to serve another 10-12 minutes before he can bowl," Australia great Ricky Ponting said on air.
Also Read: Jasprit Bumrah makes animated gestures in tense chat with Gambhir, Morkel after other bowlers 'leak runs' in 4th Test
Jasprit Bumrah cannot bowl till tea
Ravi Shastri's statements, though, triggered the panic button, revealing what was troubling Bumrah "He is shaking his head there. Don't think he is too pleased. That is the left ankle. He twisted his ankle coming down the stairs," said the former India coach. Ponting continued, "He changed his boots as well. I noticed that when he did bowl that one over, he had a pair of boots that were blue and white, very different to what I see here."
Shastri's next comment was equally worrisome. "He definitely doesn't look comfortable; that is his landing foot. If he has his ankle strapped, he probably needs a bigger boot size there. Also, what I am hearing now is that although he is out on the field, Bumrah will not be allowed to bowl till after tea. Now that's another big problem, which means India will have to look at spin pretty quickly, and that too Washington Sundar," he added.
To make matters worse for India, soon after Bumrah's visuals presented not a great picture, Siraj seemed to have done his ankle something wrong as well. On his way back to the run-up, Siraj checked on his left ankle and, after completing the over, immediately signalled to the dressing room and left the ground.
It is to be noted that India is already down with a few injuries. Nitish Kumar Reddy and Rishabh Pant have been ruled out of the series, while Arshdeep Singh sustained a cut to one of his fingers.