Former India cricketer Ashish Nehra has expressed that veteran pacer Bhuvneshwar Kumar is not a certainty in white-ball cricket. Nehra, who was the coach of IPL 2022 winners Gujarat Titans, feels that when the full-fledged Indian bowling attack comes back for the T20Is then Kumar will not find a place there. Nehra also said that only four pacers will get selected in the Indian team for the ICC T20 World Cup scheduled to be played in Australia.
For his impressive bowling performance against South Africa, @BhuviOfficial bags the Payer of the Series award. #TeamIndia | #INDvSA | @Paytm pic.twitter.com/gcIuFS4J9y
— BCCI (@BCCI) June 19, 2022
“Bhuvneshwar definitely swung the ball in the series, but what’s important for him now at this stage in his career is his fitness and the competition that’s there around him. He is not yet a certainty in white-ball cricket. When you will make the World Cup team, he will have tough competition. Only four bowlers might go to the World Cup, five when you include Hardik,” Nehra told Cricbuzz.
Bhuvi was named man of the series for his brilliant bowling display in the recently concluded India vs South Africa five-match T20I series at home. Kumar was the second-highest wicket-taker after Harshal Patel. In the second T20I at Cuttak, the right-arm pacer picked a four-wicket haul and was instrumental in India’s comeback in the third and fourth games of the series.
“Bhuvneshwar has definitely got his confidence back from this series. Even in the IPL he bowled better than he has in the past two seasons. This is a huge plus for any player because you see in T20s not just at the start, but he also has those slower ones, knuckle balls and even if it’s 130 kmph, Yorkers aren’t easy to hit,” Nehra added.
