Jasprit Bumrah joins MI camp ahead of IPL season opener vs KKR

Jasprit Bumrah is back in Mumbai and is likely to slot straight back into the Mumbai Indians lineup. He checked into the team hotel on Friday evening and the franchise is optimistic he will be available from Sunday. MI sources say chances of his playing the first game are bright.

Bumrah was at the BCCI Centre of Excellence in Bengaluru for the past five days for routine workload monitoring. He has bowled at full tilt recently and is fit to lead the attack. MI face Kolkata Knight Riders in their season opener at the Wankhede on Sunday.

Last season, he missed the first four games, with MI losing three of those. They eventually reached the playoffs but finished fourth, below their usual top-two expectations.

Two other Mumbai Indians players are yet to report: Will Jacks and Mitchell Santner. Santner, after a series against South Africa ending March 25, should join soon. Jacks is unavailable due to personal reasons and likely to report at least a week later.

The rest of the MI squad had a full practice at the Wankhede Friday night. KKR also trained there, largely at full strength except Matheesha Pathirana, whose availability is uncertain. Both teams have one more session Saturday, with attention on Bumrah.