Former all-rounder Irfan Pathan has offered tactical advice to veteran India pacer Bhuvneshwar Kumar ahead of the third T20I match against New Zealand, scheduled for Tuesday (October 27) in Wellington.
Earlier this month, Bhuvneshwar earned his national recall after a four-year hiatus, following strong performances for Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) in their back-to-back IPL-winning campaigns.
However, the 36-year-old failed to make a mark in his first two T20I outings for India on the tour of New Zealand, returning with figures of 0/49 and 1/50 at Hagley Oval in Christchurch.
During a discussion on Cricinfo, Pathan highlighted the length issue with Bhuvneshwar, observing that latter has been bowling a bit too short (around the 7 to 7.5-meter mark).
While this is traditionally considered a "good length" to contain batters, Pathan argued it is defensive for a skill set like Kumar's.
Because Bhuvneshwar relies heavily on late movement and his exceptional wrist position, Pathan urged him to pitch the ball up and bowl a fuller length.
"What I saw in the first two games, Bhuvi is slightly shorter. Still a good length, around 7-7.5 meter mark, but guys like Bhuvneshwar Kumar, they can afford to go slightly more fuller, depending on the kind of swing he's getting. What happens when you play after a long period of time, your mindset becomes slightly defensive. He's [anyways] not a very attacking bowler as far as the wicket-taking ability is concerned,” Pathan said.
"The kind of wrist he has, the kind of swing he has, what I want him to do is to take a bit more risk, especially early on when he has a new ball," he added.
Irfan Pathan believes returning to international cricket after several years away is exceptionally difficult, explaining that even consistent excellence in the IPL cannot completely prepare a player for the sudden adjustment to overseas pitches and top-level international pressure.
"It's not easy. Especially, you know that you have not played for many years for India. Obviously, you keep doing your work in the IPL, you keep performing really well. But that switch of playing for India at the top level and different pitches, if this was India, he would have been able to adjust it from the first match. But because you are playing overseas, you take time to adjust," Pathan remarked.
Bhuvneshwar Kumar will look to make amends in the third T20I against New Zealand. The visitors are leading the series 2-0 after winning both games by four wickets.
