In an age where constant headlines either belong to Virat Kohli or MS Dhoni, one man has ensured that Indian Team is not only about blitzkriegs of the bat. That bowling too is very much the strength of Indian Team is swing-specialist Bhuvneshwar Kumar’s finest contribution, it can be said.
This isn’t to say that he’s the finest proponent of medium pace bowling in the contemporary era. Neither is it to say that he’s the most ferocious white-ball specialist in the arena of speed.
But there’s a quiet surety about Bhuvneshwar Kumar that one has come to appreciate. On his watch, it seems, that all is well- not speaking of 3 Idiots- for Team India.
Currently, in England and on the cusp of a very critical deciding ODI contest against the hosts, a lot may be playing on in Kumar’s mind. After India made light work of England all thanks to Kuldeep Yadav’s phenomenal 6-25 only to see England fight back with a thumping win in the next game, the focus now rests on the deciding ODI.
And it in this very crucial times that a cricketer’s true resolve is tested endlessly. So one can surely expect what might be the thoughts in Bhuvneshwar Kumar’s mind at this time, isn’t it? Should he misfire and go for runs or should Kuldeep again rise to the occasion, wouldn’t that make the team a bit over-reliant on one bowler?
Anyways, we can debate and rabble endlessly about it. That said, it’s rather interesting to note that Bhuvneshwar Kumar came up with in an important net practice session right ahead of the final deciding ODI between India and England.
Practising hard along with this resurgent Indian side, keen to kick up past regrettable performances in England, Bhuvneshwar Kumar has been doing one thing and one thing alone- hitting the deck hard at Leeds.
In so doing, during his ongoing practice session, he delivered a ‘no-ball’. And guess what happened after that. Of course, true to the times he’s living in, Bhuvneshwar Kumar was trolled on social media.
It was rather funny though. Maybe that’s the only way to put it, no? You deliver a no-ball in midst of a live game and that adds to the pressure and unfortunately to the opposite team’s total. Then, you worry about the next delivery. But out here practising at Leeds, Bhuvneshwar Kumar didn’t have to worry for he wasn’t in midst of a live game.
Nor did his no-ball cost the team a win on this occasion. But clearly, on a few occasions, it appeared as on the video shared by the BCCI on its social media that Bhuvi had overstepped.
This was a bit of a buzzkill for the bowler. The scenario was simple- the bowler oversteps, regardless of the experience or talent. Social media posts a video and the fan, particularly the Indian cricket fan begins to troll. For that’s the only talent he possesses on a platform that attracts criticism akin to a refrigerator attracting a fridge magnet.
But that told, India’s batting coach Sanjay Bangar had some interesting observations on the cricketer ahead of the 3rd ODI. Here’s what he added:
“He’s a quality bowler. We’ve obviously been missing our two frontline bowlers in the ODI format. Also provides us an opportunity, because there are not too many games to go before the World Cup – only 16 or 17 games. It gives us an ideal situation to test the bench strength. Also with the upcoming Test series coming, we never wanted to take any chances with Bhuvi. He’s very critical to the team plans. He’s in with a chance to play (tomorrow). He’ll have to go through some sort of a fitness test before we can confirm his availability for the next game,” Mr Bangar said.