Just a day after India's Bhuvneshwar Kumar registered a record-breaking spell against Afghanistan in the country's last game of the ongoing Asia Cup, the veteran right-arm pacer was subjected to some harsh criticism by former Pakistan captain Salman Butt. Bhuvneshwar is the leading wicket-taker in this year's continental competition with 11 wickets to his name, including his outstanding spell of 4/5 against Afghanistan.
The right-arm pacer, however, bowled to expensive overs at the death, first against Pakistan and then Sri Lanka, which ultimately impacted the game's outcome. The former Pakistan opening batter, Butt, reckons that Bhuvneshwar is vulnerable in the death overs and won't be a 'good option for India at the T20 World Cup'.
"He is conceding a lot of runs in the death but taking wickets in the initial overs. The bowl is slightly swinging here (in UAE). But good teams will negate this much swing easily. The bowling wasn't that difficult. Afghanistan batters hit through the lines, and most of them are power hitters. They don't have proper technique, so they couldn't negate the swing," Butt said during a discussion on his YouTube channel.
"Bhuvneshwar struggles with pace in death overs. He doesn't have pace, so batters are not afraid of taking him on. I don't think he will be a good option for India at the T20 World Cup," the former opening batter added.
The right-arm medium pacer is likely to be India's frontline bowler in Australia for the upcoming ICC T20 World Cup with Jasprit Bumrah and Harshal Patel being the other two pacers, if fit.
