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Cricket PlayersWhy Bhuvneshwar Kumar is back after 4 years: Ajit Agarkar's exit, Jasprit Bumrah's absence and a change in India's thinking
On Tuesday, after a gap of over four years, the 36-year-old Meerut-born Bhuvneshwar Kumar returned to the Indian team for the upcoming T20I tour of New Zealand.
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Ajit Agarkar took over as the BCCI chief selector in July 2023. Bhuvneshwar Kumar had played his last game for India about seven months earlier, at the 2022 T20 World Cup. He had hoped for a return, for that was what he had been told, but selection committees usually have a tendency to look forward after every ICC tournament cycle. Bhuvneshwar realised it around the time of Agarkar's arrival.
"It wasn't hurtful, because then I knew what was happening, and I made peace with it," he said in a recent chat with Jatin Sapru on his YouTube channel.
Cricket was still a dream to live for the veteran India pacer, and he continued to notch up consistent numbers in the IPL. Since 2023, he has picked up 56 wickets in the tournament — the most by any bowler — at an average of 27.08 and an economy rate of 8.81. His standout performances came for Royal Challengers Bengaluru over the last two seasons, when he picked up 45 wickets in 30 matches as Bengaluru lifted the title in both campaigns.
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The consistent show saw discussions about a potential India return brewing among experts, which peaked after the 2026 season, when Bhuvneshwar snared 28 wickets — missing out on the Purple Cap by one wicket — at an average of just 17.89. He tormented the best in the business with swing and seam movement in the powerplay overs.
Bhuvneshwar refused to give in to the outside noise, admitting that none of it had affected him yet. But he also did not shy away from the fact that, should the day come, he would accept an India recall with both hands.
On Tuesday, after a gap of over four years, the 36-year-old Meerut-born bowler returned to the Indian team for the upcoming T20I tour of New Zealand. And according to a report by PTI, it was down to an Agarkar factor in his selection.
The report stated that Agarkar was never in favour of recalling players once the selectors had moved on from them. But with his tenure as chief selector over, Central Zone selector Rudra Pratap Singh, who had never found much support during Agarkar's tenure, finally managed to convince Pragyan Ojha and the other selectors about the value of the experienced seamer in the absence of Jasprit Bumrah.
Bumrah has been rested for the tour, with the focus on the ODI and Test series in New Zealand that will follow.
This was, in fact, the first squad announced since Agarkar's exit, with Ojha serving as interim head.
Bhuvneshwar's experience will come in handy for India as they look to guide a young crop of fast bowlers through the five-match series, with Mayank Yadav and Prince Yadav both being viewed as potential contenders for the 2028 T20 World Cup in Australia.
Bhuvneshwar will be 38 by the time the next T20 World Cup arrives in 2028. But age may not matter if the veteran seamer can sustain his consistency and make the most of this opportunity in Bumrah's absence. If he does, India could head to Australia and New Zealand with a familiar and potentially deadly combination — Bhuvneshwar and Bumrah leading the pace attack once again.
India will play five T20Is from October 22 to November 1 in New Zealand. The first match of the series is at Christchurch on October 22, followed by the second at the same venue on October 24.
The third T20I, on October 27, will be played at Wellington, while the fourth and fifth T20Is will be held on October 30 and November 1 at Auckland and Hamilton respectively.
India will also play a five-match ODI series and a two-Test series after the T20I leg.
