Bhuvneshwar Kumar will be playing the limited-overs series against Sri Lanka in July.
Former Pakistan cricketer Salman Butt thinks India missed a trick by not bringing fast bowler Bhuvneshwar Kumar to England. He said India needed a swing bowler in the team against New Zealand in the ICC World Test Championship (WTC), while they played with 'hit the deck' bowlers.
India came out against the Kiwis with the fast bowling trio of Mohammad Shami, Ishant Sharma, and Jasprit Bumrah. Bhuvneshwar has not been included in the squad for the United Kingdom tour, and he will be playing against Sri Lanka in the limited-overs series, starting on July 13.
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"I feel Bhuvneshwar Kumar should have been in India. After all, he is the best swing bowler India has. They didn't even bring him along. The amount of swing and seam that was on offer on this pitch, he should have been there. The fast bowlers who played the final are all 'hit the deck' bowlers," Butt said on Cricket Baaz with Waheed Khan.
The ex-Pakistan batsman went on to put Bhuvneshwar in the same list as England's veteran pacer James Anderson. "In terms of bowlers who release the bowlers and swing it, Bhuvneshwar... he comes in the same category as James Anderson. He is that kind of a bowler. So I thought he would have been better off but again, it's their team. They know more about the players and think tanks. Perhaps they decided what was best for them. But I feel he should have been here and even now he should be a must for England Test," Butt added.
There were reports of Bhuvneshwar not interested in playing Test cricket anymore. But the pacer straightaway denied the report saying he has prepared himself to play all three formats.
"I have always prepared myself for all three formats irrespective of the team selection and will continue to do the same," he had tweeted.