IPL 2016: Bhuvneshwar Kumar reveals how he became a quality death-bowler

Bhuvneshwar Kumar stormed his way into the international scene with a remarkable spell against arch-rivals Pakistan in a T20I. More than three years have passed since that incredible night and the right-armer has now shifted his focus from swing to pace.

Speaking to The Hindu, the 26-year old reflected on his journey, so far. Bhuvneshwar emphasized on the transition from being seen as a new-ball specialist to a bankable death bowler.

Kumar enthused, “It wasn’t just the last IPL but I have been working on this aspect for the last two-three years. That was another side that I wasn’t so good at when I made my debut in international cricket, so I have been working towards improving my death bowling for two-three years now.“

The Meerut-born seamer asserted that the IPL provided a platform for him to perfect his art. Bhuvneshwar affirmed, “Glad that it came off well in the last IPL. The IPL presents you with at least 14 opportunities to improve on a particular aspect of your game, and 14 is a huge number to make something work. “

A lot of that could be attributed to his rigorous preparation off the field which helped him add an extra yard of pace. Kumar said, “When I came into the international circuit, pace wasn’t my strength. But when you spend some time at a particular level, you realize where you need to improve in order to succeed at that level and go even higher.”

He added, “That is where I decided to work on my pace. It is one department which is usually hard to improve on at this level but I would sincerely like to thank the regime set for me by Indian team’s new trainer, Basu Shankar. He set a program for me, power training, which helped me achieve my goal without losing the key skill.”

The Uttar Pradesh cricketer plies his trade for Sun Risers Hyderabad in the IPL. However, it was Test cricket’s lure which made him concentrate on improving his pace. Bhuvneshwar noted, "When the wickets are assisting spinners, it is the fast bowlers who get preferred in the team instead of medium pacers.“

But, he assured that compromising on swing was not part of the preparation. Kumar stated, “ I realized if I wanted to play Test cricket in India, I had to gain pace but not at the cost of swing. I was always clear I wanted to be known as a swing bowler but someone who could bowl decent pace. I worked with the same objective.”

With a packed home season coming up for Team India in Test cricket, Bhuvneshwar would want to be part of the selector’s plans.