It appears Bhuvneshwar Kumar will end up playing his first international match in four years sooner than India’s upcoming T20I series in New Zealand. The veteran pacer has been added to India’s squad for the fifth and final T20I match of the ongoing series against West Indies scheduled to be played in Bengaluru on Saturday.
The development comes after left-arm pacer Arshdeep Singh sustained a blow to his bowling shoulder during the fourth match in Hyderabad on Wednesday. While he has not been ruled out, a call on whether he makes the cut in the playing XI will be taken closer to the game.
The series is currently locked at two-all with the finale scheduled to take place at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium.
Bhuvneshwar’s inclusion provides India with an
experienced pace option ahead of the series decider.
The 36-year-old had earlier been included in India’s T20I squad for the New Zealand series that starts later this month. He last played for India in November 2022.
When Did Arshdeep Suffer Blow To Shoulder?
Arshdeep sustained a blow to his shoulder while batting in the final over of the 4th T20I against West Indies in Hyderabad on Wednesday. The injury occurred when India needed 35 runs from six balls, with only a wicket remaining.
Shamar Joseph, bowling his final over after conceding 37 runs in his first two, began with a delivery that Arshdeep edged for four. After bowling a wide while attempting a yorker, Joseph switched to short deliveries. Arshdeep missed a pull shot against the second attempt before being struck on the shoulder while trying the same shot again.
The Indian team physio attended to Arshdeep, who resumed batting after a brief interruption.
Joseph continued with short deliveries and conceded five wides down the leg side.
With India needing 25 runs from the final three balls, Arshdeep retired hurt as the pain persisted.
He walked off to avoid aggravating the injury to his bowling arm, while West Indies secured a series-levelling victory.
India’s updated T20I squad: Shreyas Iyer (captain), Abhishek Sharma, Vaibhav Sooryavanshi, Ishan Kishan (wicketkeeper), Sanju Samson (wicketkeeper), Tilak Varma (vice-captain), Shivam Dube, Kuldeep Yadav, Axar Patel, Ravi Bishnoi, Nitish Kumar Reddy, Arshdeep Singh, Prince Yadav, Mayank Yadav, Naman Dhir, Bhuvneshwar Kumar.
