Happy Birthday Bhuvneshwar Kumar: A Look at 5 Incredible Bowling Performances by India’s Swing King

India's star pacer Bhuvneshwar Kumar celebrates his 30th birthday on Wednesday. Born on February 5, 1990, the right-arm pacer possesses the ability to move the ball both ways and has proved his mettle in all the formats of the game. Unlike other successful pacers of the modern era, Bhuvneshwar doesn't really rely upon raw pace but instead uses his swing and variations to fox the batsmen. Along with his abilities with the ball, Bhuvi is quite a handy batsman lower down the order and has also played many significant knocks for India. Bhuvneshwar Kumar Trolls Shikhar Dhawan for Imitating Akshay Kumar’s Character From Housefull 4.

In December 2012, the star pacer made his international debut and didn't take long in establishing his place in the side. In fact, he dismissed Pakistani opener Mohammad Hafeez off the very first ball he delivered in ODI cricket. Since then, there was no looking back for the Merut-born cricketer and he bowled many match-defining spells. So far, the pacer has scalped 63, 132 and 41 wickets in 21 Tests, 113 ODIs and 43 T20Is respectively and is still going strong. Meanwhile, let's look at the pacer's five of the best bowling performances.

5/48 Against New Zealand in Kolkata

The Kiwis were prepared for the spin challenge in their 2016 Tour of India. However, Bhunvneshwar came out of the syllabus in the 2nd Test of the series. He made ideal use of the green Eden Gardens track and rattled the visitor's top-order. He went to bag a five-fer and restricted New Zealand to 204 runs in the second innings. Riding on his effort, India clinched the match by 178 runs.

6/82 Against England in Lords

Inducting name at the Lord's honour's board is certainly a dream for many cricketers. Well, Bhuvneshwar Kumar achieved this feat during the 2nd Test of India's 2014 Tour of India. He swung the red cherry both ways and dismissed six England batsmen in the second innings of the match. To add on that, the pacer contributed with the bat too which proved to be crucial as India registered a famous 95-run win at the Mecca of cricket.

5/42 Against Sri Lanka in Colombo

After going wicketless in the first three ODIs of India's 2017 Tour of Sri Lanka, Bhuvneshwar was dropped from the side in the 4th match but made an impeccable return in the fifth clash. He took wickets with the new ball and bowled brilliantly in the death too. He went to claim his maiden five-wicket haul in ODIs due to which the home side was restricted to 238 runs and eventually lost the match by six wickets.

4/44 Against Australia in Adelaide

Another Bhuvneshwar Kumar special was seen during India's 2019 Tour of Australia. On a traditional Adelaide track, the right-arm pacer breathed fire and claimed four wickets. Courtesy his splendid performance, the Men in Yellow could only post 289 runs in the first innings. In reply, skipper Virat Kohli scored a magnificent hundred and helped India cross the line with six wickets in hand.

5/24 Against South Africa in Johannesburg

The first T20I of India's 2018 Tour of South Africa saw India's first bowler to take a five-wicket haul in all the three formats and it was Bhuvneshwar Kumar. Batting first, the visitors piled up 203 runs and the track seemed ideal for the batsmen. However, that wasn't the case when Bhuvneshwar took the ball in hand. He rattled the Proteas batting line-up and his five-fer restricted them for 175 runs. As a result, the Men in Blue won the match by 28 runs.

As of now, the pacer is out of action due to a hamstring injury and will eye to get back in the national colours as soon as possible. Also, the ICC T20 World Cup 2020 will be played in October later this year and a fully fit Bhuvneshwar Kumar can certainly enhance India's chances of lifting the title.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Feb 05, 2020 08:39 AM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).