Bhuvneshwar Kumar Reveals how Ishant Sharma Changed his Shy Character

Bhuvneshwar Kumar entered the Indian cricket team as a shy looking reserved guy. In a team which had characters like Virat Kohli, Shikhar Dhawan, Ravindra Jadeja and others, an introvert from Meerut has carved his own identity.

But, as the days passed, Bhuvneshwar shed the tag of a shy guy and started becoming more animated.

At first, many believed the change happened because he started feeling more comfortable in the dressing room. Well, the reason behind his sudden transformation is different.

In an interview with Gaurav Kapur on his web show ‘Breakfast with Champions’, the India pace spearhead revealed the reason.

Thanks to Ishant Sharma

The 28-year old said his character changed only after his senior teammate Ishant Sharma constantly pulled his legs.

“There’s a story behind it. The credit goes to Ishant Sharma.  When I joined the team, I was very quiet. You can call it hesitation or being reserved.  I would only speak if it was very important.  Even then, I would think 5 times before speaking. But Ishant Sharm would constantly pull my leg.  And I thought to myself, ‘ enough is enough now. I will give it back to him’,” he said.

“There’s a saying ‘ fortune favours the brave’.  That’s what happened with me. Therefore the credit goes to Ishant Sharma,” he added.

Meanwhile, the right-arm pacer will be next seen in action towards the end of this month when the team travels to Ireland for a two-T20I series.

Bhuvneshwar has been rested for the upcoming Test against Afghanistan, starting June 14. He will be keen to return to his devastating best against Ireland before the challenging tour of England.

The Uttar Pradesh star had a lukewarm outing in this year’s Indian Premier League. Unlike the last two seasons when he finished as the top wicket-taker, he managed just nine wickets in 12 games this season.