Bhuvneshwar Kumar doesn’t want to play Test cricket: Report

Bhuvneshwar Kumar: Undoubtedly, Test cricket is the ultimate challenge for any cricketer as it tests a player’s abilities, patience and physical fitness to the core and that is the main reason, every single player wants to play the purest form of the game for their respective countries. However, if recent reports are to be believed, India’s swing bowler Bhuvneshwar Kumar doesn’t wishes to play Test cricket anymore. Team India is scheduled to play New Zealand next in the inaugural ICC World Test Championship (WTC) final and then a five-match Test series against England and Bhuvneshwar hasn’t been named in both the squads.

Bhuvneshwar Kumar doesn’t want to play Test cricket

Without much of doubt, due to his sensational abilities to swing the new ball, Bhuvneshwar Kumar would have been a great asset for India in the England conditions. However, the reports suggest that the right-arm pacer’s fitness currently is not upto the mark for the longest format of the game. After getting fit and delivering fine performances in the Syed Mushtaq Ali and Vijay Hazare tournaments, Bhuvneshwar was also in a brilliant form during the home white-ball series against England. However, he then picked up a slight injury during the recent Indian Premier League (IPL) and now, it is understood that he is just focussing on the T20 format in future.

“Bhuvneshwar just doesn’t want to play Test cricket anymore. That drive has gone missing,” said the sources close to Bhuvneshwar Kumar.

“Those tracking the bowler’s career and cricket say he is focussing on the next T20 opportunities coming up. Those who have seen him from close insist he brought in a huge change in his work-drills a couple of seasons ago, doing away with heavy weight training, falling to the lure of the white-ball comfort and avoiding those hours of long spells that are so integral to red-ball cricket,” the source added.

Bhuvneshwar Kumar not hungry to play Test cricket anymore

The Meerut-born pacer has battled through several injury issues since 2018. It is also being reported that Bhuvneshwar Kumar just wants to concentrate on the shortest format of the game and not interested much in One-Day internationals and Test cricket right now. In 21 Tests, Bhuvneshwar has picked up a total of 63 wickets at an average of 26.1 and that includes sensational performances away from India especially in England and South Africa. Therefore, the 31-year-old’s absence from Test cricket is surely a big loss for Team India.

“To be honest, the selectors don’t even see Bhuvi hungry for 10 overs, forget Test cricket. It’s Team India’s loss no doubt, because if one bowler should have made it to England, it should have been him,” the sources further added.

Bhuvneshwar Kumar is very much likely to be named in the India squad for the white-ball tour to Sri Lanka scheduled in July.

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