Bhuvneshwar's experience crucial for India in New Zealand: Shreyas Iyer
What's the story
India's T20I captain Shreyas Iyer has hailed the return of veteran pacer Bhuvneshwar Kumar to the national team. The 36-year-old was called up at the last minute for the five-match T20I series decider against West Indies in Bengaluru after a four-year absence from international cricket. Although the match was washed out, Iyer believes Bhuvneshwar's experience will be invaluable in upcoming series, starting with New Zealand.
Captain's insight
'Bhuvi brings a lot of experience'
Iyer emphasized Bhuvneshwar's wealth of experience, especially in the Indian Premier League (IPL).
He said, "Bhuvi definitely brings a lot of experience to the team. We were lacking that a little, especially after the IPL."
The captain also noted Bhuvneshwar's recent success in T20 cricket, having won the IPL twice in the last two years and knowing how to dominate this format.
Selection dilemma
Iyer ready to deal with selection headaches
Bhuvneshwar's return has complicated the selection process for Iyer, but he is willing to deal with it.
He said, "It's good in a way and it motivates the current team members that we have to consistently perform for the team."
Returning to the format after November 2022, Bhuvneshwar will be competing with Mayank Yadav and Prince Yadav.
In the rain-affected Bengaluru T20I, Bhuvi was named in the Playing XI alongside Prince Yadav, with Arshdeep Singh out injured.
Return
Returning to the setup
Bhuvneshwar was already part of India's T20I squad for the upcoming series against New Zealand.
Replacing Arshdeep in Bengaluru, the right-arm seamer finally made his first appearance for India since November 2022. However, the match was called off after the first innings.
Bhuvneshwar played his first T20I for India after three years and 40 days.
He missed 106 T20Is in this period, the longest gap between T20I appearances for India (by matches), according to Cricbuzz. Khaleel Ahmed held the previous record (104).
Numbers
A look at his T20 numbers
As of now, Bhuvneshwar is also one of only seven Indians with 90-plus T20I wickets. In 88 T20Is, he has taken 90 wickets at 23.10 (BBM: 5/4).
According to Cricinfo, Bhuvneshwar is the only Indian pacer with multiple fifers in T20I cricket. Overall, only Varun Chakravarthy and Kuldeep Yadav share this record with Bhuvi.
The right-arm seamer has 363 wickets from 333 T20s at 24.42.