An Oddsworth Opinion
Is Bhuvneshwar Kumar's New Zealand series a blip or the end of the comeback?
Indian fans have spent the week wincing at Bhuvneshwar Kumar's figures against New Zealand, 0 for 49, 1 for 50 and 0 for 40, and bracing for whatever the last two T20Is add to the bill. Set those spells beside the rest of his recent bowling and they look like a stranger's.
Across every T20 he has played in the last two years he has gone at 7.81 an over, against 8.18 for bowlers across the format, and taken 82 wickets at an average of 21.
How far off his own standard is he?
A long way. Over 346 T20s since 2011 his economy is 7.36, with 377 wickets at an average of 24.31, and the 49 and 50 he gave up from four overs apiece in the first two T20Is are the sort of figures he used to hand out rather than receive.
Both of those matches went India's way regardless, each won by four wickets, which is why the grumbling is about him rather than the side.
- WJapanWon by 2 runs v Japan, 2026-09-22
- WSri LankaWon by 124 runs v Sri Lanka, 2026-10-01
- WPakistanWon by 19 runs v Pakistan, 2026-10-03
- WWest IndiesWon by 8 wickets v West Indies, 2026-10-06
- LWest IndiesLost by 6 wickets v West Indies, 2026-10-09
- WWest IndiesWon by 14 runs v West Indies, 2026-10-11
- LWest IndiesLost by 24 runs v West Indies, 2026-10-14
- NRWest IndiesNo result v West Indies, 2026-10-17
- WNew ZealandWon by 4 wickets v New Zealand, 2026-10-22
- WNew ZealandWon by 4 wickets v New Zealand, 2026-10-24
What was he doing in September?
Taking wickets for Lucknow Falcons. He took 4 for 10 from four overs against Meerut Mavericks in early September, after 3 for 20 against Kashi Rudras in late August, and nothing in those spells hinted at what was coming in New Zealand.
His whole game is built on keeping the runs down, swinging the new ball and making batters earn every boundary, and the three spells against New Zealand have done nothing of the sort. A bowler who concedes 40 or more in each of three outings has stopped doing the one thing that got him picked.
1.1 a match in his career
Should he play the fourth T20I?
Yes. Our SMAT bowling ratings have him third of 130 bowlers and our IPL bowling ratings 15th of 142, and both make him worth about three runs a match more than an average bowler. A bowler of that standing does not lose his place over three nights, however loud the wincing.
Three bad nights against two years of beating the format's going rate is a blip with a crowd watching it. The record says the miser with the new ball is still in there. Pick him on Friday, give him the first over, and the last two matches stop being something to dread.