‘Nobody showed any kindness in picking him’: Wasim Jaffer on Bhuvneshwar Kumar’s return to India

Bhuvneshwar Kumar (BCCI Photo) Bhuvneshwar Kumar’s return to India’s T20I squad has received strong support from former India batsman Wasim Jaffer, who believes the veteran pacer’s selection is based on his performances and fitness rather than any favouritism.Bhuvneshwar, 36, has been recalled for India’s five-match T20I series against New Zealand starting on October 22. Jaffer feels that the veteran seamer should have been brought back to the national team earlier.“Der aye durust aye. Wo deserve karte hain (Better late than never. He deserves it). Unko select karke koi meherbani nahi ki hai kisi ne (Nobody did a favor by picking him). His performances were there and his fitness was good. I have no idea why he was dropped earlier,” Wasim Jaffer said on his YouTube channel.India will play five T20Is from October 22 to November 1 in New Zealand. The first game of the series will be played in Christchurch on October 22, with the second to follow on October 22 at the same venue. The third T20I, on October 27, will be played in Wellington, while the fourth and fifth T20Is will be played on October 30 and November 1 in Auckland and Hamilton, respectively.

‘It’s important to keep age aside’

Jaffer pointed to Bhuvneshwar’s fitness and consistent performances in the IPL and at Uttar Pradesh while questioning why age was used as a factor against him.“He has maintained his fitness really well. Whenever he got an opportunity, he has done really well. He has always done well in the IPL and for Uttar Pradesh. So, what was the reason why he was not selected?” he said.“Age ko thoda side mein rakhna chaiye (we should leave age aside). We have young players but we shouldn’t neglect those who are doing well because eventually you need experience when the pressure is on. You can’t play a completely young team. You have to have that mix of experience and youth,” Jaffer said.Bhuvneshwar played 21 Tests, 121 ODIs and 87 T20Is for India, taking 90 wickets in the shortest format. His experience could also come in handy for the younger pacers in the current set-up.

Team India T20I vs New Zealand:

Shreyas Iyer (C), Abhishek Sharma, Sanju Samson (wk), Vaibhav Sooryavanshi, Ishan Kishan (wk), Tilak Varma (vc), Axar Patel, Shivam Dube, Nitish Kumar Reddy, Naman Dhir, Prince Yadav, Mayank Yadav, Arshdeep Varthy Singh, B Chaunk Yadav, Arshdeep Varthy Singh, B Chaun Yadav.