At present, there is an intense competition within that Indian ODI bowling department. Keeping in mind that India plays Hardik Pandya at number seven, and follow that up with two spinners, only two Pacers can play for the remaining spots.
When the contenders for those two spots mainly are Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammad Shami and Umesh Yadav, things get incredibly tricky. Throughout the series, Bhuvneshwar had been under some scrutiny. The swing sensation, who has increased his pace to a fine extent in the recent past, didn’t have any wicket to his credit in the three games he featured in. Thereby, for the final game of the series, it was imperative for Kumar to leave a long lasting impression with the ball.
The UP pacer did just that, as he bagged his career best figures and ended up taking a five wicket haul. The speedster was named the Man of the Match, and he was quite relieved on getting back to form.
“I was not among wickets in the first few matches. But I was happy with the way I bowled today. We knew they were not strong against slower balls,” said Kumar, when quizzed about his use of the slower deliveries.
He concluded by mentioning that he didn’t have a point to prove to anyone in the series, and was happy to perform when given a chance.
“I did not want to prove anything. Whenever I get the opportunity I wanted to do well for my team,” Kumar added.