IND vs SA: End of the road for Bhuvneshwar Kumar?

IND vs SA: Bhuvneshwar Kumar FLOP SHOW costs India – Bhuvneshwar Kumar had a day to forget on Friday after the veteran Indian pacer was truly ineffective during the 2nd ODI at Paarl. With India needing a win to stay alive in the series, Bhuvi had a disastrous outing, conceding over eight and over, failing to scalp a single wicket as the proteas ran out deserved winners. The performance comes after a dismal outing in the 1st match as well, and questions will be raised regarding his future with the Indian team. Follow Insidesport.in for all IND vs SA LIVE Updates.

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IND vs SA: Bhuvneshwar Kumar FLOP SHOW costs India ODI series in South Africa, is it THE END for veteran pacer?

IND vs SA 2nd ODI: Bhuvneshwar Kumar had the worst possible start to his day after Quinton de Kock tore into him, smashing 16 of his opening over. Captain KL Rahul then straight away opted to bring in Ashwin, keeping Bhuvi away from the new ball, which remains one of his strong points in ODI cricket. He eventually did hand Bhuvi the ball back later in the game, but runs continued to flow, as the veteran conceded runs at a steep rate, with South Africa inching closer to their target after a stellar opening partnership. Bhuvneshwar Kumar eventually went wicketless, conceding 67 in his eight overs at an astonishing economy rate of 8.4.

The performance comes on the back of a dismal outing in the series opener as well, where Bhuvneshwar Kumar went for 64 in his 10 overs, where he was especially leaky at the death. While the 33-year-old had bowled a tight spell with the new ball, he leaked severely at the death, conceding 46 off his last five as South Africa made a competitive 296, which proved too much in the end for Team India.

Former Indian captain Sunil Gavaskar was particularly critical of Bhuvneshwar, suggesting that India were lucky that this series did not count in the ICC Super League. In his column for the Times of India, Gavaskar wrote, “Both Bhuvneshwar Kumar and Shardul Thakur leaked runs, though Thakur had made up for it somewhat by cracking an unbeaten half-century when SA had eased the pressure. For some time now, Bhuvneshwar has not been able to stem the runs in the final overs like he used to. That this series doesn’t count for points in the ICC Super League is a blessing. India being the host country will get an automatic entry, but that route is not for this Indian team.”

Also Read: IND vs SA 2nd ODI: Bhuvneshwar Kumar’s form not a concern, we are playing ODIs after long time says Rishabh Pant

IND vs SA: Bhuvneshwar Kumar FLOP SHOW costs India ODI series in South Africa, is it THE END for veteran pacer?

Bhuvneshwar Kumar was part of India’s squad at the T20 World Cup last year and had struggled for consistency and wickets. Bhuvi has had his fair share of injury troubles and the management have given him a longer rope, but with the likes of Deepak Chahar warming the bench, the 33-year-old will surely will be having very few chances under his belt to turn it all around.

Cricket