IRE vs IND: 'He Has Found A Second Wind': Aakash Chopra Praises Bhuvneshwar Kumar For Bouncing Back After Lean Patch
Published - 27 Jun 2022, 06:11 PM | Updated - 23 Aug 2024, 12:09 AM
After winning Man of the Series for India against South Africa in the five T20 International matches, veteran bowler Bhuvneshwar Kumar continued his recent hot streak against Ireland in the opening T20 International of the two-match series on Sunday (June 26).
In the opening match at The Village in Dublin, the right-arm bowler provided India with a quick start by dismissing the opposing skipper Andrew Balbarnie in the first over alone. He finished with the statistics of 1 for 16 in three overs.
Balbarnie’s dismissal by Bhuvi elevated him to the top wicket-taker in the game’s shortest format during the powerplay. He has surpassed Tim Southee of New Zealand and veteran West Indies spinner Samuel Badree, both of whom had 33 dismissals, by taking 34 wickets in the first six overs.
Aakash Chopra Thrilled By Bhuvneshwar Kumar’s Performance
Aakash Chopra, a former Indian cricketer, was thrilled by Bhuvi’s performance in the first T20I, which set the tone for India in the match. Chopra praised the 32-year-old bowler for coming back well after a rough period.
Chopra said that this is Bhuvneshwar Kumar’s second coming while discussing the first India-Ireland T20I in a video uploaded to his YouTube account.
“Let’s talk about Bhuvi because he has found a second wind. If you had asked me six to eight months back, I would have said that Bhuvneshwar Kumar has been a very good bowler, but he is not in my T20 scheme of things because there was no pace in the deliveries.”
“There was swing in the hand, but let’s be honest, the swing that was always there had also reduced, the pace was slightly going down, and suddenly you are asking that an important component of the bowling is missing, without which it will not work because there are a lot of other bowlers.”
Bhuvneshwar Kumar Is Back: Aakash Chopra
Bhuvi had previously experienced fitness issues and a number of diseases. However, he made a remarkable recovery and showed that he still had a lot to offer.
“But this is his second wind. You will give him a lot of credit for how well he has bowled. You will also credit the team management for sticking with him continuously, I felt they would not stay with him after the World Cup. But he is continuously improving.
The way the ball is swinging from his hand, it’s been a revelation of sorts about how well you can get your rhythm back. The speed gun is still showing the same speed but the swing is back. That means Bhuvneshwar Kumar is back. I am really, really happy for him,” he added.
In the shortest format of the game, Bhuvneshwar Kumar has taken the third most wickets for India. He has taken 65 wickets at an average of 24.01 in 65 games played so far.
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IRE vs IND 2022
