Importance of the U.P. Bowler in the Indian Cricket Team
Bhuvneshwar Kumar recently reached the landmark of 100 ODI wickets against Australia. He made his One Day International debut in 2013 against Pakistan and made an impression from his very first delivery, taking the wicket of Mohammad Hafeez with a beautiful in-swinger. In his T20I debut which was also against Pakistan, he didn’t fail to impress and had created a match out of nothing with figures of 3/9 in his 4 overs.
However, this was not the first time the cricketing world had seen an Indian bowler swinging the ball both ways and bowling around the 130 km/h mark. A spot has always been there in the Indian bowling line up for this kind of fast bowler since 2007.
Many fast bowlers have represented India during this period and three of them were Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Praveen Kumar, and Rudra Pratap Singh. These three players belong to the category explained above and have filled that spot over the years. Since all of them are from Uttar Pradesh(U.P.), let’s give a name to that spot — the U.P. bowler.
Apart from playing for U.P., the three of them have many things in common. All of them have the ability to swing the ball both ways and that too with great precision. RP Singh was the first one of this kind who made his international debut in 2005 against Zimbabwe. Singh was in his prime in the 2007-08 season. India toured England and Australia during this time and also won the T20 World Cup in South Africa. The green pitches and overcast conditions brought out the best in RP Singh with some of his notable spells coming at the historical cricket grounds of Lord's, Durban and Perth.
The UP Bowler loves bowling at the Lord's cricket ground
RP Singh took a 5 wicket haul at this ground in 2007 in a drawn match. Four years later, RP Singh was not there but this time, Praveen Kumar rose to the occasion and took a 5 wicket haul. When India toured England in 2014, the tradition continued. Bhuvneshwar Kumar did not disappoint at all, taking 6 wickets in the first innings of the match which eventually lead to the victory of India. Bhuvneshwar went on to become the Man of the Series for India.
The three of them have been consistent performers in the Indian Premier League (IPL). Bhuvneshwar Kumar and RP Singh have also won the Purple Cap (most wickets in a season in IPL) with the former winning it twice - in 2016 and 2017. RP Singh won the Purple Cap in 2009 which helped his team (Deccan Chargers) win the IPL Title that season. Same happened with Bhuvneshwar Kumar and Sunrisers Hyderabad in the 2016 season of IPL. Praveen Kumar is an exception to this but still has the record of bowling most number of maidens in IPL next to his name.
The U.P. Bowler featured in major trophies won by India under MS Dhoni :
It is a great list of achievements for any team and MSD always had the UP bowler with him while he collected each one of these trophies - World Cup 2011, T20 World Cup 2007, Champions Trophy 2013, and CB Series 2008.
At Durban in 2007, India needed to defend a target of around 120 runs in the inaugural T20 World Cup against the host nation, South Africa who hadn’t lost a single game in the tournament. But RP Singh was all ready to take India to the semifinals as he ran through the South African top order and ended up with figures of 4/13.
Bhuvneshwar Kumar had just arrived on the International scene when he was selected for the Champions Trophy of 2013 and given the responsibility of opening the bowling. He was expected to take quick early wickets along with the likes of Umesh and Ishant. Dhoni trusted Bhuvi's strengths to swing the new ball and Bhuvi never failed to deliver in the pacer-friendly conditions at Edgbaston and Cardiff.
The CB series of 2008 was India’s first ever ODI series win in Australia who had recently won the World Cup in 2007. Praveen Kumar, a newbie at that time took a 4 wicket haul in the second Final and helped India defend a low score of 258. He was not at all shy to swing the ball against the likes of Gilchrist, Hayden, and Ponting. He was also a part of the 2011 World Cup squad but was replaced by Sreesanth due to an unfortunate injury.
Despite these great spells and achievements, lack of pace ended the careers for RP Singh and Praveen Kumar. However, Bhuvneshwar has worked on his pace and has also improved his death bowling by mastering the yorker and the knuckleball. These added strengths along with his well-established ability to swing the ball has made him a consistent member of the Indian ODI and T20 team. The 100 wicket landmark is really special to every Indian supporter who has been longing for this since the era of Khan, Agarkar, and Pathan. With the 2019 World Cup around the corner, Bhuvneshwar will hold the responsibility of opening as well as bowling in the death for India along with Jasprit Bumrah.
The UP bowler might not go down as a legend in the history books but certainly, his control and discipline on swing bowling have been instrumental for the success of the Indian Cricket Team and a treat for the viewers.
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