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The 30-year-old had to undergo surgery in London in January and then began his rehabilitation at the National Cricket Academy (NCA) after returning to India and has been out of action since then.
The swing King from Meerut, who was last seen in India colors in December last year in a T20I match against the West Indies in Mumbai, is fully fit now and desperately wants to make a comeback to the Indian side.
“I have now fully recovered from the injury and am raring to go,” Bhuvneshwar told Timesofindia.com in an exclusive interview.
“While it’s hard to keep indoors for a person like me who has always been accustomed to traveling, training and doing outdoor activities, as an athlete these are the times when we still need to prioritize fitness even while staying safe at home,” he said .
With the entire country under lockdown due to the fast-spreading coronavirus pandemic, the 30-year-old right-arm pacer has been doing skipping and body weight training in order to keep himself fit and focussed.
“Staying in, I was motivated by ASICS’ #StaySafeStayStrong challenge and have started to do a lot more exercises. Skipping and body weight training (calisthenics) has become an integral part to keep myself fit as there are no weights or gym equipment at home, ”the Indian pacer said.
Bhuvneshwar was the wrecker-in-chief for India in the 2019 ICC World Cup semi-final against New Zealand. I’ve claimed three wickets, scalping Colin de Grandhomme, Tom Latham and Matt Henry, and helped India restrict New Zealand to 239 for 8 in 50 overs in Manchester. Despite Bhuvneshwar’s valiant efforts with the ball though, pre tournament favorites India went on to lose the match by 18 runs and crashed out of the quadrennial event.
“There has been a lot of talk and discussion about that match, I believe that things didn’t go our way and it happens in cricket,” the pacer said.
“We had a bad game and that unfortunately came at the wrong time of the tournament i.e the knockout phase,” Bhuvneshwar, who claimed 10 wickets in 6 matches in the tournament at an economy rate of 5.20, told TimesofIndia.com.
It’s not just in the international and domestic arenas, Bhuvneshwar has been a vital cog in the wheel for his Indian Premier League (IPL) team Sunrisers Hyderabad too.
The 30-year-old joined the Orange Army in 2014 from Pune Warriors (now defunct) and since then has been leading the pace attack for the Hyderabad outfit.
With his ability to swing the ball both ways, Bhuvneshwar claimed two back-to-back Purple Caps (leading wicket-taker in an IPL tournament) in 2016 (23 wickets in 17 matches) and 2017 (26 wickets in 14 matches). I’ve played a very important role in his team’s title victory in the 2016 edition, when Sunrisers defeated Virat Kohli-led Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) by 8 runs in the summit clash.
Just ahead of the 2020 edition, Sunrisers announced Australian hard-hitting opener David Warner would be returning as their captain. Warner took back charge of the team from Kane Williamson.
On being asked about the difference in the captaincy styles of Warner and Williamson, Bhuvneshwar said: “I think both the players have done really well for Sunrisers Hyderabad and given it their all for the teams cause”.
“Both the players led from the front as captains and I am sure it will continue that way in whatever capacity these guys play. Also, I don’t see much difference in the approach, but all that I know is that they are willing to do everything for the team, “Bhuvneshwar signed off.
