"They shouldn't forget him totally" - Ashish Nehra says Bhuvneshwar Kumar should have been considered for IND vs SA limited-overs series
Ashish Nehra feels Bhuvneshwar Kumar should still be considered in India's white-ball plans.
The selectors recently picked the Indian squads for the multi-format tour of South Africa. Bhuvneshwar was ignored in all three formats despite most of the frontline seamers being rested for the limited-overs leg of the tour.
During a discussion on JioCinema, Nehra was asked about his thoughts on the squads chosen for the South Africa tour, to which he responded:
"I am not at all surprised that the selectors have picked three different teams. Pretty much everyone's name has come. There might be hardly any player who is there or thereabouts whose name is not there. Only one name comes to my mind, because you are going to South Africa, and you have picked a lot of fast bowlers, and that name is Bhuvneshwar Kumar."
Ashish Nehra believes an experienced and performing bowler like Bhuvneshwar Kumar shouldn't be forgotten. He said:
"I understand that you have other new-ball options, you have Arshdeep Singh, and Mukesh Kumar is playing. However, if you see all the options, Bhuvneshwar Kumar is an experienced bowler who I will say is still doing well. The selectors should keep an eye on him. They shouldn't forget him totally, especially when you talk about T20 and 50-over formats."
Bhuvneshwar, with 90 scalps, is the second-highest wicket-taker for India in T20I cricket, behind only Yuzvendra Chahal's tally of 96 wickets. The latter has also not been picked in the T20I squad, although he has been included for the ODIs.
"He can fit in any white-ball team" - Ashish Nehra on Bhuvneshwar Kumar
The cricketer-turned-commentator went on to elaborate why Bhuvneshwar Kumar can still be an asset in white-ball cricket.
"When you talk about white-ball, Bhuvi can fit in any team, especially when he is bowling well, because he does not lack at all in terms of skill and experience," Nehra said. "It's a different thing that he didn't play against Australia here, but he should be kept in the scheme of things."
Nehra acknowledged that there is tough competition for the seamers' positions, with the likes of Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammed Siraj, Mohammed Shami, Arshdeep Singh, Mukesh Kumar, Prasidh Krishna and Avesh Khan in the mix. However, he added that Bhuvneshwar has a good head on his shoulders and should be considered if someone gets injured or is not bowling that well.