India vs Australia 2nd ODI: Jasprit Bumrah rested by Men in Blue; Steve Smith leads Aussies

Jasprit Bumrah was given another break ahead of the ICC World Cup as both India and Australia made changes to their lineup for the second one-day international in Indore. Bumrah had only recently made his return to the sport after recovering from a back injury that forced him sit out for nearly a year, and the Indian team think-tank might just be looking to use him sparingly ahead of the World Cup that begins on 5 October. LIVE: India vs Australia, 2nd ODI in Indore Mukesh Kumar had been added to the India squad for the second ODI at Indore’s Holkar Stadium, though it was ultimately Prasidh Krishna who was awarded Bumrah’s spot in the XI, with the Men in Blue making just the one change in their lineup. The Indian pace spearhead, however, will travel with the India squad to Rajkot for the series finale on Wednesday. “Mr Jasprit Bumrah did not travel with the team to Indore for the 2nd ODI against Australia.He has gone to visit his family and given a short break by the team management,” BCCI wrote in a post on microblogging platform ‘X’, formerly known as Twitter. “Fast bowler Mukesh Kumar has joined the team as Bumrah’s replacement for the 2nd ODI. Bumrah will join the team for the final ODI in Rajkot,” added BCCI.

🚨 UPDATE 🚨: Mr Jasprit Bumrah did not travel with the team to Indore for the 2nd ODI against Australia.

He has gone to visit his family and given a short break by the team management. Fast bowler Mukesh Kumar has joined the team as Bumrah's replacement for the 2nd ODI.

Bumrah… pic.twitter.com/4shp3AlXZV

— BCCI (@BCCI) September 24, 2023

Bumrah isn’t the only key pacer missing out on today’s action. Australia skipper Pat Cummins too is set to watch the game from off the field, with Steve Smith leading the visiting team in his stead. Australia made as many as three changes to the side that suffered a five-wicket loss at Mohali’s IS Bindra PCA Stadium on Friday, bringing in Josh Hazlewood, Spencer Johnson and Alex Carey for Cummins as well as all-rounders Marcus Stoinis and Mitchell Marsh. South Australia’s Johnson, who has a grand total of two T20Is as far as his international experience is concerned, was handed his maiden ODI cap on Sunday. India are currently leading the three-match series after successfully chasing down the 276-run target set by Australia on Friday, and will aiming to clinch the series before the action shifts to Rajkot, where regular skipper Rohit Sharma will return to action along with the likes of Virat Kohli, Hardik Pandya and Kuldeep Yadav. Teams: India: Shubman Gill, Ruturaj Gaikwad, Shreyas Iyer, KL Rahul(w/c), Ishan Kishan, Suryakumar Yadav, Ravindra Jadeja, Ravichandran Ashwin, Shardul Thakur, Mohammed Shami, Prasidh Krishna Australia: David Warner, Matthew Short, Steven Smith(c), Marnus Labuschagne, Josh Inglis, Alex Carey(w), Cameron Green, Sean Abbott, Adam Zampa, Josh Hazlewood, Spencer Johnson