The former England fast bowler Steve Harminson, who was one of the prominent fast bowlers for England in all forms of the game made a surprising comment on Indian spearhead Jasprit Bumrah and compared his presence with football legend Cristiano Ronaldo.

Talking to TalkSport cricket, Harminson said “if Bumrah will not play in the Champions Trophy, it will be like football World Cup without Cristiano Ronaldo”.

“And I mean, I would even go up to the morning of the final to take him that far because he’s Jasprit Bumrah.

“He’s the best in the world. So that would be my take on from an Indian point of view.

“It’s like going to a football World Cup with your best striker, Cristiano Ronaldo. 15 years ago you don’t replace Ronaldo until you have to replace him. So I think I would imagine that’s what India will do.

“Just put him in the squad and carry him around in a sedan chair. It’s a 14-man squad. That’s good enough to get me through the group games.

“We might get him by semifinal, more than the semifinal. If he’s not fit, we’ll replace him just in case we have another injury. But he’s Jasprit Bumrah.”

Jasprit Bumrah’s Progess

The bowling load on Bumrah has been increased since then, he underwent scans for his back in Bengaluru. He started to bowl two overs at a time and then moved on three and now its upto four overs. Despite the progress it stilll remains uncretain whether he will be fully fit or not and a trial practice match for Champions Trophy before the team goes to Dubai is likely to start from February 15.

India In Champions Trophy

India is placed in Group A of the Champions Trophy, with the likes of Pakistan, Bangladesh, and New Zealand. As India is unlikely to travel to Pakistan, the matches for India will be hosted in Dubai. The campaign for India starts on February 20 against Bangladesh, then Pakistan on February 23, and New Zealand on March 2.