Former Pakistan captain Salman Butt opined that India pacer Bhuvneshwar Kumar needs to up his pace to survive in international cricket. Notable that Bhuvneshwar Kumar was dropped from India’s ODI squad for the series against West Indies however he got a lifeline as he retained his place in the T20I squad.
Bhuvneshwar Kumar didn’t have a great time on the South Africa tour as he remained wicketless in both ODIs and also conceded the runs with an economy of more than 7. India faced a thrashing 0-3 defeat against the proteas. And as a result of that, the selectors made wholesale changes in the bowling line-up as they inducted some genuine pace bowlers in form of Avesh Khan.
Bhuvneshwar Kumar remained wicketless in the ODI series against South Africa
Assessing his performance on his Youtube channel, Salman Butt suggested that Bhuvneshwar Kumar needs to add a yard or two in his pace if he wants to remain effective in international cricket. He opined that a pacer can’t survive with a speed of 125-130 kph unless he has the skillset of former Pakistan pacer Mohammad Asif.
“Bhuvneshwar Kumar needs to seriously bring his pace back. With a speed of 125-130, if you don’t have something ‘extra-special’ like Mohammad Asif, or if you don’t get the conditions that assist spin, you don’t have a life as a fast bowler,” Salman Butt spoke on his Youtube channel.
Butt further pointed out that the wicketkeeper Rishabh Pant was standing up to the stumps against Bhuvneshwar. He suggested India to go for the bowlers who can pick wickets for them as containing runs won’t solve the problem.
“If the keeper is standing up for you in South Africa, what are you doing there as a fast bowler? Definitely, they need to move in a direction where they have wicket-taking options, where batsmen have a fear in mind that the bowler is fast and that they can be hit. If you don’t have speed, the batsman doesn’t have a second thought. He will attack you with confidence,” said Butt.
Bhuvneshwar will be part of the T20I series against the West Indies which will start on February 16 in Kolkata.
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