ICC World Cup 2019 | Satisfying performance considering the conditions, says Bhuvneshwar Kumar

In a clinical display of disciplined bowling, Bhuvneshwar Kumar got the better of the Australian batsmen and managed to be on top of them for the vast majority of his 10 overs bowling quota as he ended the match with figures of 3/50. Considering the ease with which India managed to score 350 odd runs, it was more than clear that the track was as flat as they come and the bowlers were going to have a tough time on it. Hence, it is no surprise that Kumar was satisfied with how he bowled.

“This performance is very satisfying because if you look at the conditions, it is fully in favour of batsmen. There’s nothing much for the bowler and managing to get them out on this wicket has been a good boost. Since there wasn’t much help from the wicket, we didn’t wish to give them much room and we capitalised on it. That was our plan,” he said in the ICC mixed media zone.

“The Oval has always been a good batting track and there’s not much for the bowlers. We knew it would be a high-scoring match and we were mentally prepared. We just tried to make it difficult for the batsmen with slower balls and other variations,” Bhuvi added.

Though Warner was the highest scorer in IPL 2019 with 692 runs, he did so while playing for Sunrisers Hyderabad, a team captained by Bhuvi himself. Hence, the bowler seemed to have extensive knowledge of the strengths and weaknesses of his counterpart, something he managed to take advantage of by taking the crucial wicket after Warner had managed his way to a sturdy 65.

“I bowled a slower one and he missed it. That’s how I got the wicket. In fact, shuffling across to the off-stump is his strength and he gets maximum runs that way. This time he missed. He missed that ball and it was a good thing for us,” Kumar explained.