Virat Kohli during a virtual press conference in Ahmedabad on Thursday.
As India gear up to take on England in the five-match T20 series in Ahmedabad, with the first lined-up tonight, hosts skipper Virat Kohli expressed his happiness on Bhuvneshwar Kumar making a return to the side after a long injury lay-off.
The frontline Indian pacer hasn't played for India post-pandemic due to a hamstring injury that occured during the Indian Premier League, where he represented Sunrisers Hyderabad. In fact the last time Bhuvi played for India was 15 months ago against West Indies.
"Bhuvi is shaping up really nice. He is a smart operator like we have seen in the past," Kohli said in the pre-match press conference. "He has clear understanding what he wants to do and is one of our most experienced T20 bowlers. He is the guy you can bank on, so glad to have him back."
Kohli further stressed the importance of the five-match series against England as it is the last time the side will play T20 cricket in national colours before the T20 World Cup in October-November.
"These are the only five games we have as a team before the World Cup and we want to see how these guys fare in the middle. I feel the squad right now we have barring Jaddu, who will come back whenever fit, is the most balanced in terms of the options available to take the field as and when required," he said.
