Jasprit Bumrah undergoes back surgery in New Zealand

Jasprit Bumrah underwent successful back surgery on March 6, Monday in New Zealand to be fit for the ODI World Cup scheduled to commence in India later this year.

According to a report by ESPN Cricinfo, the speedster will recover from the surgery in New Zealand by the end of March and start his rehabilitation under the watchful eyes of BCCI's medical staff to give him ample time to be completely fit for the ODI World Cup at home in October-November. 

The board has chalked out a thorough recovery plan for Bumrah, and if things go according to plan, the fast bowler will be back on the field in August, with the team management slowly increasing his workload. 

The recovery period for the pacer is set to be approximately six months, which makes it a race against time for him and the Indian team ahead of the mega event. 

The BCCI decided that Bumrah would go under the knife following consultation with the fast bowler and also the National Cricket Academy (NCA). He is now ruled out of the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2023 and the summit clash of the World Test Championship in June if India qualify. 

The 29-year-old has been out of international cricket since September 2022 with a lower-back stress reaction. While he resumed bowling in December and was set to feature in the series against Sri Lanka, he faced niggles ahead of the first game and was subsequently ruled out of the tour. 

In the last six months, Bumrah has missed the Asia Cup and the T20 World Cup in Australia, and the Men in Blue would hope to have him at optimum fitness ahead of the ODI World Cup.