India batting coach Sitanshu Kotak suggests Bhuvneshwar Kumar, 36, was probably brought back for the New Zealand T20Is to add experience while Jasprit Bumrah is missing.
India batting coach Sitanshu Kotak has offered his reading of Bhuvneshwar Kumar's T20I recall. ESPNcricinfo reported (byline Sreshth Shah) that Kotak, speaking ahead of the second T20I against West Indies in Ranchi, suggested Bhuvneshwar was "probably" brought back to add experience because Jasprit Bumrah is absent. Kotak was clear that the call is "the selectors' choice" and described this as one reason it might have happened, not a confirmed explanation.
| At a glance | Details |
|---|---|
| Player | Bhuvneshwar Kumar, 36, back in India's T20I squad after nearly four years |
| Last T20I | November 2022, in New Zealand |
| Tour | Five T20Is in New Zealand from 22 October 2026, starting in Christchurch; Shreyas Iyer captains |
| Other seamers | Arshdeep Singh, Mayank Yadav and Prince Yadav; mystery spinner Varun Chakravarthy also returns |
| Bumrah | Not part of the New Zealand T20Is; reports say he was rested for workload management |
Kotak's reading of the recall
Kotak's argument is simple. With Bumrah missing, India's pace group is short on experience, and Bhuvneshwar has plenty. "you can't beat experience", Kotak said, and of the selectors' thinking: "That's why they must have picked him". Both lines are his interpretation of a decision that was announced on 6 October, not a statement of the panel's reasoning.
The Cricinfo story notes that India felt Bumrah's absence on the summer tour of the UK, where they lost 2-0 to Ireland and 4-0 to England in T20Is, a six-game losing streak. Bumrah will not be part of the New Zealand T20Is either.
The case for Bhuvneshwar
Bhuvneshwar's recent form backs the idea. He took 45 wickets across the last two IPL seasons for Royal Challengers Bengaluru, 17 in 2025 and 28 in 2026 at an economy of 7.95, helping RCB win back-to-back titles. The story also notes that his new-ball swing should be useful in New Zealand conditions.
Ranchi, the winning streak and Kishan
India go into the second T20I on a ten-game T20I winning streak. The Full Member record is 12, jointly held by India and Afghanistan. Kotak expects a high-scoring wicket in Ranchi, where India have a 4-4 T20I record but a three-game winning streak. Ishan Kishan is 2026's leading T20I run-scorer with 1042 runs and could threaten the calendar-year record of 1488.
Laxman and selection meetings
Kotak also backed the BCCI's decision to involve VVS Laxman, head of the BCCI Centre of Excellence, in future selection meetings. He said head coach Gautam Gambhir and Laxman are already in regular contact, and that the move aims to improve communication over player fitness and availability.
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