"We have a couple of guys who could do Jasprit Bumrah’s role"- Rohit Sharma ahead of IPL 2023

Mumbai Indians (MI) skipper Rohit Sharma has claimed that the team has identified two potential candidates from their squad who could fill the huge void of Jasprit Bumrah in the IPL 2023 season.

The star speedster has not played any international cricket since September last year, having suffered from a stress fracture in the lower back and has reportedly undergone surgery. This could hurt MI a lot since Bumrah is arguably their most impactful bowler and Rohit's go-to man.

However, in a press conference ahead of the IPL 2023 season, Rohit Sharma remained positive about the team having backups for Jasprit Bumrah. He said:

"We know that Bumrah’s not available. We have a couple of guys who could do Bumrah’s role in the team. We will keep an eye on that, hopefully, whatever they space Bumrah was in, the others guys can come and do that for us."

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Jasprit Bumrah's absence is an opportunity for youngsters: Rohit Sharma

While it won't be easy for MI to replace someone of Jasprit Bumrah's stature, Rohit Sharma downplayed the situation as he didn't want to put pressure on the youngsters and uncapped players in the squad. He feels that this is an opportunity for those players to express themselves and make an impact.

On this, Rohit stated:

"He (Bumrah) is a big miss. But it's an opportunity for the youngsters in the team.I don’t want to put too much pressure on the youngsters. Leading up to the first game, guys know what their role is, the last thing we want to do is put pressure on them. For guys who haven’t played the IPL before, there are quite a few guys, and if they get an opportunity, I would love to keep it simple for them."

MI could potentially announce replacements for Bumrah and Jhye Richardson in the next couple of days.