Former Indian all-rounder Yuvraj Singh feels India need a swing bowler like Bhuvneshwar Kumar to succeed in English conditions.
In fact, a lot of cricket boffins thought that Bhuvneshwar Kumar would have been lethal in the World Test Championship final as he can swing the ball both ways.
However, Kumar wasn’t selected for the WTC final and the series against England due to his injury woes. Earlier it was reported that the swing bowler from Uttar Pradesh doesn’t want to play Test cricket but he had later squashed those reports.
On the other hand, a lot of cricket experts like Sunil Gavaskar and Aakash Chopra had stated that Bhuvneshwar Kumar would have been handy in the English conditions in the World Test Championship final against New Zealand but he was not picked due to his fitness issues.
The fast bowler from Uttar Pradesh played his last Test match back in 2018 against South Africa and since then hasn’t been part of the Test squad due to injuries.
Kumar has played 21 Test matches in which he has scalped 63 wickets and has had a start-stop career in the Test matches. Meanwhile, India have bowlers like Ishant Sharma, Mohammed Shami and Jasprit Bumrah, who are not genuine swing bowlers but are known to seam the ball.
Yuvraj Singh said while talking to Times of India, “We have all the match winners. The conditions are really difficult in England. I feel that India need a swing bowler, because with the Dukes ball you should know how to swing it. You have got fast bowlers – Mohammed Shami, Jasprit Bumrah, Ishant Sharma. We need someone like Bhuvneshwar Kumar.”
On the other hand, the battle between Virat Kohli and James Anderson will be a key one to watch out for. Anderson had troubled Kohli in 2014 but could not dismiss the Indian captain even once in the 2018 series in England as the talisman scored 593 runs in five Test matches. Yuvraj added that this battle will be a treat to watch.
“With the Dukes ball, I think James Anderson definitely will be the most dangerous. Even at this age, he is at his best. For me, the Anderson vs Virat battle will be there. I will be keen to watch these guys.”
The first Test between India and England will take place at Trent Bridge, Nottingham on August 4.
