IND vs WI: Bhuvneshwar Kumar added to India’s squad for 5th T20I against West Indies
Veteran pacer Bhuvneshwar Kumar has been added to the Indian squad for the fifth and final T20I against the West Indies. This inclusion follows an injury to Arshdeep Singh, who sustained a shoulder injury after being struck by a delivery from Shamar Joseph during the fourth T20I. Although Arshdeep Singh’s name remains in the squad, Bhuvi has been included as a precautionary measure. It will be quite interesting to see whether the management decides to give Bhuvi an opportunity in the playing XI.
In Arshdeep’s absence, Bhuvi could lead the pace attack alongside Mayank Yadav and Prince Yadav. However, after his inclusion in the squad, it felt like he would play the series decider.
The BCCI media advisor confirms that Bhuvneshwar Kumar was added to the squad after Arshdeep Singh sustained a blow to his bowling shoulder during the fourth T20I against West Indies, with a decision on Arshdeep's availability for the final match to be taken based on his recovery.
“Bhuvneshwar Kumar was added to the squad after Arshdeep Singh sustained a blow to his bowling shoulder during the fourth T20I of the series against West Indies on Wednesday in Hyderabad. A decision on his participation for the final T20I will be taken prior to the game based on his recovery,” says the BCCI press release.
Bhuvneshwar has also been picked for the upcoming New Zealand T20I series after a four-year gap, after his two impressive IPL-winning campaigns with Royal Challengers Bengaluru. His last appearance for the national team came in November 2022, against New Zealand in Napier. He had recently been training at the BCCI CoE in Bengaluru in preparation for his upcoming international return.
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— BCCI (@BCCI) October 16, 2026
Arshdeep Singh sustains blow to bowling shoulder; Bhuvneshwar Kumar added to #TeamIndia’s squad for the Bengaluru T20I.
More Details ▶️ https://t.co/i18NeqDLrU#INDvWI | @mflone_
The fifth T20I between India and West Indies will take place at Bengaluru's M. Chinnaswamy Stadium, a familiar home ground where Bhuvneshwar Kumar has played for RCB over the past two IPL seasons. The India vs West Indies 5-match T20I series is currently level at 2-2, and the winner of the final T20I will clinch the series. The hosts, India, won the opening and third T20I, while the visitors made an incredible comeback in the 2nd and 4th encounters, and now the series is on the line.
India’s updated T20I squad: Shreyas Iyer ©, Abhishek Sharma, Vaibhav Sooryavanshi, Ishan Kishan (wk), Sanju Samson (wk), Tilak Varma (vc), Shivam Dube, Kuldeep Yadav, Axar Patel, Ravi Bishnoi, Nitish Kumar Reddy, Arshdeep Singh, Prince Yadav, Mayank Yadav, Naman Dhir, Bhuvneshwar Kumar.
