Bhuvneshwar Kumar to return in final IND vs WI T20I after 1,245 days
Bhuvneshwar Kumar will make his return to India's T20I side when he is included for the final India v West Indies T20I in Bengaluru, a development reported on October 16, 2026. The appearance will be his first T20 international for India since November 2022.
The 36-year-old has been a regular in India’s attack across formats, playing for the national side for almost a decade. He has appeared in 21 Test matches, taking 63 wickets. In One-Day internationals he claimed 141 wickets in 121 matches, with a best of 5/42 and an economy rate of 5.08. In T20 internationals he has played 87 games and taken 90 wickets, his best performance coming against Afghanistan in September 2022 when he took five wickets for four runs.
Kumar had been out of the India setup for a period, but strong Indian Premier League form kept his international prospects alive. He played significant roles in Royal Challengers Bengaluru’s back-to-back title wins in the last two editions of the tournament. In 2025 he took 17 wickets in 14 matches, and in the subsequent year he picked up 28 wickets in 16 matches.
Selectors named him in India’s squad for a five-match series against New Zealand in late October, but his recall occurred even earlier. He was added into India squad for the final IND vs WI T20I after Arshdeep Singh sustained an injury.
Kumar’s last appearance for India came in November 2022 against New Zealand at McLean Park in Napier; that match ended in a draw via the DLS method. In that game the Black Caps won the toss and elected to bat first, with Devon Conway and Glenn Phillips both making half-centuries to help New Zealand to 160.
In the same match Arshdeep Singh and Mohammed Siraj each claimed four wickets, while Bhuvneshwar finished without a wicket. India managed 76 runs in nine overs as the match concluded in a DLS-adjusted draw.
The selection means Kumar will don the Indian T20I jersey after 1,245 days. The final IND vs WI T20I will be played at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru.