India tour of South Africa: Former opener Aakash Chopra said Bhuvneshwar Kumar hasn’t been incisive for over a year now and that he is unlikely to be part of India’s white-ball teams in the near future.
Bhuvneshwar Kumar failed to pick any wickets in the first two matches. (AFP Photo)
HIGHLIGHTS
- Bhuvneshwar Kumar was dropped for India’s 3rd ODI vs South Africa on Sunday
- He did not pick up a wicket in the first 2 ODIs in South Africa
- India were clean swept 0-3 by Temba Bavuma’s men in the ODI series
Former India opener Aakash Chopra said on Sunday that Bhuvneshwar Kumar hasn’t looked incisive or sharp in the last 18 months and it’s unlikely that he will be picked again for India in white-ball cricket in the near future.
Chopra’s comments came after Bhuvneshwar endured a poor run in the 3-match ODi series in South Africa. Bhuvneshwar went wicketless in the 2nd ODIs he played on the tour. He gave away 64 runs in the first ODI and 67 in just 8 overs in the 2nd ODI before he was dropped for the series finale in Cape Town on Sunday.
Bhuvneshwar failed to trouble the batters with the new ball and looked inefficient with the old ball as well as India struggled with the ball and slipped to a 0-3 series loss in the ODIs.
Bhuvneshwar Kumar has picked up just 9 wickets in 7 ODIs in the last two years while his T20I returns haven’t been great either. In 21 T20Is since the start of 2019, he has managed just 20 wickets at an econmy rate of over 7 runs per over. Bogged down by injury concerns, the 31-year-old pacer has looked a shadow of his former self in the recent past.
“India’s white-ball bowling needs to be remodelled, you need to change a few things around. In this shape and form, it’s just not cutting it with regards to picking wickets or even staying economical,” Chopra told Star Sports after India lost the ODI series 0-3 in South Africa.
‘Bhuvneshwar hasn’t been sharp’
Deepak Chahar and Prasidh Krishna came in place of Bhuvneshwar and Shardul Thakur for th 3rd ODI. While the two pacers picked up 5 wickets between them, Deepak hit a quickfire 54 with the ball that helped India get close to South Africa’s total of 287. Chopra said Bhuvneshwar’s selection in the future has nothing to do with the other bowlers coming in and picking wickets, adding that the senior pacer has been far from his best.
“Well, not because Deepak Chahar has bowled or batted well today (in the 3rd ODi). It looks like Bhuvneshwar needs a break. He can’t walk into the time the next time India is playing white-ball cricket. As simple as that. That has very little to do with what Deepak or Prasidh Krishna has done,
“Bhuvneshwar hasn’t been sharp or incisive in the last 16-20 months.
“So it’s a good thing that Deepak Chahar has gotten an opportunity and picked up a couple of wickets. But he still hasn’t bowled at the death. He has to bowl for long enough, bowl in different conditions and against different batters.
“Bhuvneshwar Kumar, I don’t see him getting picked in the near future in white-ball cricket. 50 overs or 20 overs,” Chopra added.
Click here for IndiaToday.in’s complete coverage of the coronavirus pandemic.
Discussion about this post