Shardul Thakur changed the game with wickets in the middle overs: Bhuvneshwar Kumar

Bhuvneshwar Kumar heaped praise on his teammate Shardul Thakur after the third ODI of the India vs. England series. Kumar believes Thakur's wicket-taking skills proved to be game-changing for the home side.

In a virtual interaction with reporters after India's series win against England, Bhuvneshwar Kumar spoke at length about his fast-bowling partner. Thakur turned the game in India's favor by dismissing Dawid Malan, Jos Buttler, Liam Livingstone, and Adil Rashid in the final one-dayer.

"He (Shardul Thakur) performed excellently tonight. He picked up wickets for us during a phase when the ball stops swinging, and it was a batting wicket, so it becomes very difficult for a bowler to bowl in that period. In my opinion, he changed the game with his wicket-taking skills. Generally, spinners provide us with the breakthroughs in the middle overs, but we had only one spin-bowling option tonight. So, Shardul stepped up when the team needed him," Bhuvneshwar Kumar said.

How it started: How it's going:@imShard #INDvENG #Shardul pic.twitter.com/W5y3wte9Md

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Bhuvneshwar Kumar also highlighted how Shardul Thakur has evolved as an all-rounder in the T20I and ODI series against England. The pacer believes Thakur's contributions to the batting department will continue to help the Indian team in white-ball cricket.

Bhuvneshwar Kumar praises Prasidh Krishna's mental strength

Bhuvneshwar Kumar picked up six wickets in three ODIs against India

Bhuvneshwar Kumar was the most experienced fast bowler in the Indian squad for the ODI series against England. The Meerut-based pacer shared the new ball with debutant Prasidh Krishna in the 50-over leg of the series.

Bhuvneshwar was impressed with the way Krishna came back in the opening game of the series. The SRH star also lauded his new teammate's mental strength.

"Prasidh Krishna went for runs in the first few overs during the first ODI. Still, he came back and won the match for us. It shows his mental strength; it highlights the way he has prepared himself for the big stage. His four-wicket haul was quite crucial for us. Even in the next two games, he knew the wicket would assist the batsmen, but his confidence did not drop at all," Bhuvneshwar Kumar added.

Best figures by an India bowler on debut in men's ODIs – 4/54 👏A performance to remember for Prasidh Krishna!#INDvENG pic.twitter.com/9L09QWqylO

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