Former India batter Hanuma Vihari urged the management to bring veteran pace bowler Bhuvneshwar Kumar back into the team. He said this after the Men in Blue suffered a five-wicket loss against the West Indies in the third ODI. They failed to defend 351 runs as West Indies chased it down in 48.2 overs. He also stated that Bhuvneshwar Kumar was still one of the country’s best bowlers and asked the selectors, management, coach, and captain to think about this as well.

“I think they have to bring Bhuvneshwar Kumar back. In my opinion, he is still one of the best bowlers in the country. He is proving in the IPL. He will do it. You need that calmness and he brings that. Indian selectors, management, coach, captain all need to think about it,” he said in a video on his YouTube channel.

“You need to find the right bowling combination. You cannot depend on Bumrah and Hardik. You have to have backup in case of such injuries. I will say go with experience. Get Bhuvneshwar and Shami back. You will have some security with experience. When you need a breakthrough, you can go to them and they will do the job for you. You need stability and experience will always count,” he stated.

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Hanuma Vihari added that India needed someone like Bhuvneshwar Kumar to take the new ball alongside Mohammed Siraj or Jasprit Bumrah as well. He also said that Prasidh Krishna was not a proper new ball bowler and that the inclusion of a veteran would give the Indian team more flexibility.

“You need to find the right bowling combination. You cannot depend on Bumrah and Hardik. You have to have backup in case of such injuries. I will say go with experience. Get Bhuvneshwar and Shami back. You will have some security with experience. When you need a breakthrough, you can go to them and they will do the job for you. You need stability and experience will always count,” he said.

“The West Indies exposed the Indian bowling attack. They are not even part of the World Cup. Imagine top teams like Australia, South Africa, England. I think it is high time that as a team, we don’t just depend on Bumrah or Hardik. What if they are not available for the World Cup due to injury? I hope it does not happen. But what if? Who are the go-to bowlers then?,” he concluded.