Is he the answer to India’s search for the perfect all-rounder? Uttar Pradesh’s Bhuvneshwar Kumar is perhaps one among the youngest members of the Pune Warriors India (PWI) team, but in a short time, he has proved that he has exceptional capabilities hen it comes to both batting and bowling.
What’s nice about Bhuvneshwar is that he sticks to the basics and experiments within that fold, rather than coming up with something innovative.
He’s more than fascinated with the whole IPL experience and says that he is proud to be playing for the country and PWI, a team that he says he adores.
Bhuvneshwar says he has been practising cricket for as long as he can remember and playing for the nation is a dream come true.
“I worked really hard during high school and in college. After excelling at the state level, I couldn’t hold back my eagerness to play for the nation. The IPL offers a different experience, unlike what I’ve witnessed before,” Bhuvneshwar tells Metrolife, when he was out with his team as part of a promotional activity.
Although he seems to be the shy kind, he has made a concious effort to break free from that mould and mix with the cricketers from different teams.
“There may be a lot of entertainment in cricket but with all this, there’s a serious side as well. As a young cricketer, I am exposed to some of the best strategies and planning. You learn how the other cricketers, especially the senior ones, think and stay calm even under tremendous pressure,” he notes.
Bhuvneshwar thinks the IPL also gives Indian cricketers a chance to learn more about the foreign players in the team, including their lifestyles and their thoughts on the game.
“Cricket may be played in few countries across the world. But when I spend a lot of time chatting with foreign players in the team, I get different perspectives about the game,” he shares.
There’s surely a playful side to Bhuvneshwar as well. He confesses that a few of his foreign fellow cricketers have asked him to teach them one or two Indian languages. “It’s a mutual effort . Not only do we try to pick up bits and pieces of each other’s languages, but we try and understand each other’s culture and food habits too. I’ve also introduced some of our teammates to the best of Indian food,” he signs off.