Bhuvi brings a lot of experience to the team – Shreyas Iyer and Mitchell Santner on India’s pace ace
One of the primary discussions ahead of India’s T20I series opener against New Zealand in Christchurch was the inclusion of Bhuvneshwar Kumar to the side. Kumar was mentioned by the Indian skipper, Shreyas Iyer, in India’s pre-match presser while also getting a mention from New Zealand skipper, Mitchell Santner in New Zealand’s presser.
With the conditions in New Zealand favouring pace and swing, Bhuvneshwar can be a major difference maker in terms of the game’s result. Both Santner and Iyer highlighted that Bhuvi’s experience can be the x-factor that India will be looking forward to.
Highlighting Bhuvi’s flair, Iyer said, “Bhuvi brings a lot of experience to the team. And we were lacking that a little, especially after IPL, we had a lot of new bowlers. But in T20, if you see his career graph in the last two years, he has also won IPL, so he has a very good idea about how to dominate this format.”
New Zealand skipper, Mitchell Santner added, “I think Bhuvi will love these conditions in New Zealand. If there's anything in the wicket, he'll find something out of it. [Even] on some flat ones in India, still manages to nip the ball and swing the ball. So with the new ball out here especially, he'll be a challenge.”
He further added, “I mean in India it's pretty challenging as a bowler these days, like we've seen in the recent series [against West Indies], 250 getting chased down - who wants to be a bowler? - but he might like it out here a little better."
