New Delhi. The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) has made a major change in the Indian squad for the upcoming fifth and final T20 match against West Indies. Due to injury to left arm fast bowler Arshdeep Singh, the selection committee has included experienced seamer Bhuvneshwar Kumar in the Indian team. The fifth and decisive T20 match between India and West Indies is to be played on Saturday at the M. Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru.
Arshdeep Singh’s shoulder injury and Bhuvneshwar’s sudden return have once again heated up the discussions in the cricket circles.
How did Arshdeep Singh get injured? Shamar Joseph’s bouncer became the reason
Arshdeep Singh was seriously injured while batting during the fourth T20 match played in Hyderabad. In the last over of the Indian innings, West Indies fast bowler Shamar Joseph hit a flurry of bouncers against Arshdeep. Meanwhile, a fast and dangerous short-pitched ball from Joseph hit Arshdeep directly on his left shoulder.
The ball was so fast that Arshdeep had to face severe pain on the field itself. Seeing the seriousness of the situation, FEO had to immediately run onto the field and ultimately Arshdeep could not continue his innings. BCCI has confirmed in its official statement that the final decision regarding Arshdeep’s playing XI will be taken only after assessing his fitness and recovery status before the match.
Four years long exile ends, Bhubaneswar returns
This comeback is very special and shocking for Bhuvneshwar Kumar. Earlier, he was also selected in the Indian team for the upcoming five-match T20 series against New Zealand, which clearly shows that he has returned to the national team after a long gap of four years.
Bhuvneshwar played his last international match on 22 November 2022. After this, due to the continuous arrival of new fast bowlers, his name started disappearing from the discussions of the Indian team. Even in the selection meetings, his name had stopped being considered, but his hard work continued in domestic cricket and in the nets. Now his selection in the final T20 against West Indies is a clear indication that the team management wants to test the fitness and rhythm of this experienced bowler just before the New Zealand tour.
India’s updated T20 squad against West Indies:
Shreyas Iyer (captain), Abhishek Sharma, Vaibhav Suryavanshi, Ishan Kishan (wicketkeeper), Sanju Samson (wicketkeeper), Tilak Verma (vice-captain), Shivam Dubey, Kuldeep Yadav, Axar Patel, Ravi Bishnoi, Nitish Kumar Reddy, Arshdeep Singh, Prince Yadav, Mayank Yadav, Naman Dheer and Bhuvneshwar Kumar.