Bhuvneshwar Kumar recall for India ends a four-year absence [Paul Childs/Reuters]By ReutersPublished On 16 Oct 202616 Oct 2026India have added Bhuvneshwar Kumar to the squad for the fifth and deciding Twenty20 International (T20I) against West Indies.
The fast bowler comes in as cover for Arshdeep Singh, who continues his recovery from a shoulder injury, the country’s cricket board said on Friday.
Arshdeep sustained a blow to his bowling shoulder during the fourth T20 International in Hyderabad and retired hurt. He was struck while batting as the West Indies levelled the five-match series at 2-2.
A decision on Arshdeep’s availability for the series decider in Bengaluru on Saturday will be taken before the match.
Bhuvneshwar, 36, returns to India’s T20I setup for the first time in nearly four years.
The seamer has also been named in India’s squad for the T20 International series in New Zealand, which begins on October 22.
India have twice led the series, but two centuries for West Indies captain Shai Hope have evened matters in each of the following games.
The second match of the series also marked the West Indies’ record chase in a T20 International.
The hosts claim a 2-1 series win in the One-Day Internationals that preceded the T20s, although Hope’s century in the third match led West Indies to a record run chase.
Shreyas Iyer (c), Abhishek Sharma, Vaibhav Sooryavanshi, Ishan Kishan, Sanju Samson (w), Tilak Varma, Shivam Dube, Kuldeep Yadav, Axar Patel, Ravi Bishnoi, Nitish Kumar Reddy, Arshdeep Singh, Prince Yadav, Mayank Yadav, Naman Dhir, Bhuvneshwar Kumar
