The five-time champions have brought in the former KKR bowler to replace their ace speedster, who is ruled out of the tournament.
Mumbai Indians (MI) have brought in Sandeep Warrier as replacement for the injured Jasprit Bumrah prior to the 2023 edition of the Indian Premier League (IPL).
The five-time champions have roped in the India and Tamil Nadu pacer in place of their ace speedster, who has been ruled out of the competition with a persistent back injury.
Speculations had done the rounds as to who MI’s designated Bumrah replacement will be ever since the Indian spearhead had been confirmed to miss the tournament entirely.
Ultimately, in a budget pick, the top think-tank went in favour of Warrier, the experienced pacer from down south, at a sum of INR 50 lakhs.
Sandeep Warrier has been a consistent performer at the domestic level for Kerala and now Tamil Nadu. Being around the circuit for nearly a decade, the 31-year-old right-arm quick has featured in 66 first-class and 69 List A encounters, besides his 68 domestic T20 outings, in which he has bagged 62 wickets at a respectable economy rate of 7.20 runs an over.
Warrier is known for his accuracy and discipline with the ball in hand. He took just three wickets in five matches for TN at this season’s Syed Mushtaq Ali T20 but they arrived at an eye-catching economy rate of 5.77.
His consistent performances over the years in SMAT had earned Warrier a surprise call up for the 2021 tour of Sri Lanka where he made his T20I debut for an alternate Indian side while the seniors were busy on Test duties in UK.
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Being around the IPL circuit for quite some time, the pacer has previously plied his trade for Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR), Mumbai Indians (MI) and Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB).
In what are the biggest shoes to fill, Warrier comes in place of Bumrah, who will be missing the IPL 2023 entirely after recently undergoing surgery in New Zealand for a persistent lower-back injury that has held the world’s finest pacer back since last year.
Bumrah hasn’t played any form of competitive cricket since the month of September the previous season and is now set to undergo an extensive rehab process as he strives to regain full fitness prior to the World Cup for India in October-November.
