Umran Malik, Mohammed Siraj set to travel with Team India for T20 World Cup: Report

Team India's preparation for the T20 World Cup suffered a major blow with star pacer Jasprit Bumrah getting injured ahead of the tournament. Following the injury, the bowler was ruled out of the South Africa series with Mohammed Siraj getting a recall. While team India coach Rahul Dravid has not officially ruled out Bumrah of the T20 World Cup squad, reports have emerged about Mohammad Siraj and Umran Malik being drafted into the World Cup team for the showpiece event in Australia.

T20 World Cup: Mohammad Siraj and Umran Malik to travel to Australia  

According to a report by Insidesport, the BCCI are keeping its fingers crossed over Bumrah's fitness. With the 28-year-old still doubtful for the T20 World Cup, BCCI is looking to carry two pacers as a backup for Bumrah. Currently, Umran Malik is playing for the Rest of India in the Irani Trophy, while Mohammed Siraj is with Team India for the South Africa series. 

The report further states that Bumrah may travel with Team India to Australia only if BCCI will be able to arrange for his rehab with the team. In case the pacer fails to meet the standard of fitness by the middle of October, the team management will then think about getting a replacement for the star bowler. According to the report, the World Cup-bound Indian cricket team will leave for Australia on October 6 and will have a short preparatory camp in Perth. The Rohit Sharma-led team is scheduled to play its first warm-up match on October 17.

Umran Malik breathes fire on Day 1 of the Irani Trophy

Umran Malik bowled brilliantly on Day 1 of the Irani Trophy as the Rest of India took firm control of the match. The youngster picked up three wickets as Saurashtra were bowled out for just 98 runs. The Jammu and Kashmir pacer took a wicket in his first over of the match, as he dismissed Arpit Vasavada on 22. Umran went on to take wickets of Jaydev Unadkat (12) and Dharmendrasinh Jadeja (26), eventually ending with figures of 3/25 in 5.5 overs.

Mukesh Kumar and Sarfaraz Khan also produced brilliant performances with the ball and bat respectively. Kumar was the pick of the bowlers for ROI with a four-wicket haul, while Kuldeep Sen picked up three wickets. Sarfaraz continued his fine form with the bat scoring an unbeaten 125 runs at stumps on Day 1. Skipper Hanuma Vihari stayed unbeaten on 62 runs. The Saurashtra bowlers did fight back picking up three ROI wickets only for Hanuma Vihari and Sarfaraz to put up a strong partnership.