Bhuvneshwar Kumar Birthday; Top 5 performances by India’s ‘swing king’ in international cricket

Indian pacer Bhuvneshwar Kumar has returned 35 on Wednesday, February 4. He has been one of the finest bowlers for Team India, picking 294 wickets, including  7 fifers and 10 four-wicket hauls, at an economy rate 29.50 in 229 matches across all formats at international format. Bhuvneshwar Kumar earned India's ‘swing king’ sobriquet due to his ability to trouble the best batters in the world with his swing bowling.

Over the last couple of years, Bhuvneshwar Kumar has been out of favour of Team India and is currently plying trade in the domestic cricket, representing Uttar Pradesh, and in the IPL. Though the veteran pacer is no longer in India’s scheme of things in all formats of the game, his contribution to Men in Blue’s success with his swing bowling can never be forgotten. On his birthday, we have picked five best bowling performances by Bhuvneshwar Kumar in his international career.

1. 4/8 vs Sri Lanka in ODI (2013) 

One of the top performances by Bhuvneshwar Kumar at international level was his brilliant bowling in a tri-series match against Sri Lanka at Port of Spain in 2013. His swing bowling brilliance troubled the Sri Lankan batters. In a rain-affected match, India won the toss and opted to bat first. The Men in Blue posted a total 119/3 in 29 overs. With the DLS method coming into effect, Sri Lanka were asked to chase a 178-run target in 26 overs. Bhuvneshwar Kumar wrecked havoc with his swing bowling as he picked wickets of Mahela Jayawardene, Upul Tharanga, Kumar Sangakkara, and Lahiru Thirimanne to register figures 4/8 with an economy rate of 1.33 in 6 overs. Eventually, India won the match by 81 runs and qualified for the finals. 
 

2. 2/27 vs Pakistan in ODI (2012) 

Bhuvneshwar Kumar was shot to international fame with his brilliant performance in his debut game for Team India. In the first ODI against Pakistan in Chennai, India posted a total of 227/6 in 50 overs. With Pakistan chasing a 228-run target, Bhuvneshwar Kumar opened the bowling for India, a move that surprised many. On the first ball of his debut game, Kumar rattled Mohammad Hafeez’s stumps to kick off his maiden international match in style. He picked the second wicket of Azhar Ali to register figures of 2/27 at an economy rate of 3 in 9 overs. Despite Kumar’s brilliant debut, India lost the match as Pakistan chased down a 228-run target in 48.1 overs. 
 

3. 5/33 vs West Indies in Test (2016) 

Bhuvneshwar Kumar was one of the pillars of India’s bowling line-up. One of the best performances by the swing king was against the West Indies. The third Test against Caribbean side was his comeback to Indian team in the longest format of the game and he did phenomenally well by registering figures 5/33 at an economy rate of 1.39 in 23.4 overs in the first innings. He was the most economical bowler for India in the first innings of the match. In the second innings, Bhuvneshwar picked only one wicket but conceded only 13 runs in a 12-over spell. India went on to win the match by 237 runs and Bhuvneshwar Kumar had a memorable comeback to the Indian Test team. 
 

4. 3 runs in 3 overs vs West Indies (2014 T20 World Cup) 

In the 2014 T20 World Cup, Bhuvneshwar Kumar put on a brilliant performance with the ball against West Indies in the group stage of the tournament. He opened the bowling for India despite having Mohammed Shami in the team. West Indies’ batters were unable to tackle Kumar’s swing bowling as he conceded just 3 runs in 3 overs without taking a wicket. His economical spell helped India restrict West Indies to 129/7 before the Men in Blue chased down a 130-run target in 19.4 overs, thanks to half centuries by Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli. 
 

5. 6/82 vs England in Test (2014) 

One of the highlights of his Test career was his brilliant performance in a match against England at Lord’s. He recorded his best Test bowling performance in the match as he scalped six wickets while conceding 82 runs at an economy rate of 2.64 in 31 overs. His bowling brilliance at the Home of Cricket drew applause and appreciation from the crowd and cricket experts. With this, he became the first Indian bowler to take six wickets in an innings at Lord’s since Amar Singh achieved the feat in 1936. Bhuvneshwar Kumar’s bowling figures made it to Lord’s Board of Honours.