Bubneshwar Kumar's story has entered the ranks of examples of resurgence in Indian cricket, where the athlete demonstrated his response not with words, but with results. After being dropped from the Indian team in 2022, many believed his international career was coming to an end. However, after four years, he returned to the national team and refuted all prevailing opinions.
Interestingly, what was previously considered his weakness became the main factor in his return. At the age of 36, Bubneshwar Kumar still masterfully wields the art of making the ball spin in both directions. Although his speed has decreased, his ability to place the ball accurately and change direction at the last moment remains a serious challenge for batsmen.
Bubneshwar Kumar's main advantage is his outswing. He makes the ball move away from the batsman, searching for the outside edge of the bat at the last moment. Furthermore, a suddenly incoming ball can completely stun the player. Therefore, reducing Bubneshwar merely to a fast bowler would be an underestimation of his skills. Over the years of hard work, he developed the technique of moving the ball in the air while playing white balls, which cannot be learned quickly.
In the 2022 T20 World Cup against England, Bubneshwar Kumar did not show the expected level of play. In Adelaide, Alex Hales and Jos Buttler put pressure on the Indian bowling, and Bubneshwar lacked his former sharpness in pace and spin. Following this, questions arose about his form during the tour of New Zealand. Young and fast bowlers began to be preferred in the squad, and Bubneshwar gradually fell outside the selectors' plans. At that time, few could have predicted that at 36, he would wear the Indian jersey again.
The most significant reason for Bubneshwar Kumar's return was his performance in the IPL (Indian Premier League). For the seasons 2025 and 2026, he took 45 wickets for Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB). Although the team's attack attracted players like Virat Kohli, Rajat Patidar, and Krunal Pandya, Bubneshwar consistently performed his role in bowling. His ability to create spin on the new ball, maintain correct length, and use experience in tense situations made him indispensable for RCB. He demonstrated that a decrease in speed does not mean the disappearance of a bowler's influence.
Bubneshwar Kumar hails from Meerut, a city long known for its traditions of manufacturing cricket balls and spinning bowlers. Before him, Pravin Kumar also brought special status to the city in the world of cricket through his spin bowling. Pravin Kumar noted: 'Meerut has something special in the air.' Buvy fully justified this statement with his bowling. His swinging balls remained his distinguishing feature for a long time.
After Ajit Agarkar became the chief selector, decisions in the team started to be future-oriented. Many expected Bubneshwar Kumar to return to the squad due to his experience, but the selectors chose a different path then. Now, after Agarkar's departure, Buvy's fate has changed.
A distinctive feature of Bubneshwar Kumar's return was that he made no loud statements after being dropped from the team. Instead of criticizing the selectors or complaining about his situation, he continued to work on his game. He played baseball cricket for Uttar Pradesh and shared his experience with young bowlers. Then he showed consistently high results in the IPL.
Bubneshwar's return sparked an interesting debate in Indian cricket. A former Indian player and BCCI (Board of Control for Cricket in India) official jokingly told the news agency PTI: 'If Bubneshwar has come, then Mohammed Shammi cannot stay aside either?'
Bubneshwar Kumar's return is also important because it challenges the idea that success in T20 cricket is guaranteed only by youth and high speed. Having had his career questioned in 2022, he will reappear in the Indian jersey in 2026, using his oldest weapon—ball spin.
