India, Oct. 7 -- On November 22, 2022, India apparently moved on from one of their most prodigious swing bowlers. Bhuvneshwar Kumar played for the last time in the Indian Blues on that day against New Zealand at Napier. He bowled four overs, went wicketless, and soon disappeared from India's plans. The numbers for him that year in T20Is were not particularly punishing either. In 32 matches, he picked up 37 wickets while averaging 19.56 and conceding runs at an economy rate of 6.98.

However, India began to look beyond, and after nearly four years, it has returned to him. The 36-year-old has been picked in the Indian squad for the five-match T20I series in New Zealand. The most interesting part of this dramatic comeback is not simply that ...