Bhuvneshwar Kumar earns India call up for fifth West Indies T20I as cover for injured Arshdeep Singh

Veteran pace bowler Bhuvneshwar Kumar has been added to the Indian squad for the fifth and final T20 international against West Indies at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru, the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) confirmed in an official statement. The inclusion comes after left-arm seamer Arshdeep Singh sustained a shoulder injury during the fourth T20I in Hyderabad on Wednesday.

The BCCI clarified that Bhuvneshwar has been brought in as a precautionary measure. A final decision regarding Arshdeep's availability for the series finale will be taken shortly before the start of the match on October 17.

Early return for the veteran pacer
Bhuvneshwar was recently named in the Indian T20I squad for the upcoming series against New Zealand, marking his return to the national setup after a four-year hiatus. His last international outing came against New Zealand in 2022. Consistent performances in the Indian Premier League (IPL) and domestic circuit earned the veteran seam bowler his national recall. Following his addition to the squad for the final match against West Indies, Bhuvneshwar's international comeback could happen earlier than anticipated.

India’s updated squad for 5th T20I vs West Indies
Shreyas Iyer (captain), Abhishek Sharma, Sanju Samson, Vaibhav Sooryavanshi, Ishan Kishan, Tilak Varma (vice-captain), Axar Patel, Shivam Dube, Nitish Kumar Reddy, Naman Dhir, Prince Yadav, Mayank Yadav, Ravi Bishnoi, Arshdeep Singh, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Kuldeep Yadav.