The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) has, already announced the squads for the upcoming UK tour and the 2026 Asian Games, like really soon. Shreyas Iyer will be captain of the T20I side, taking over from T20 World Cup 2026-winning skipper Suryakumar Yadav. With Iyer in charge the selectors have also ushered in a few fresh faces into the T20I setup, sort of. Though some new players did manage to grab a chance, the experienced pacer Bhuvneshwar Kumar once again didn’t make it into any of the squads announced for the next assignments. The Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) fast bowler had yet another strong run in the TATA IPL 2026 and ended up among the tournament’s leading wicket-takers. He picked up 28 wickets, only one behind Purple Cap holder Kagiso Rabada. Despite putting in good shows across the last two IPL seasons, Bhuvneshwar sort of stayed out of the national selectors plans. He hasn’t got a proper call-up, nor has he really been brought up in those talks around the latest squad picks. The experienced seamer was also left out of the India A team setup that is currently tour ing Sri Lanka. With all that said, it makes you wonder, has Bhuvneshwar Kumar’s time with the Indian team really come to an end ? Even if coming back to the senior side looked a little far fetched, Bhuvneshwar could have still made it into the India A squad, to prove himself via regular performances in List A cricket. Instead, the 36-year-old has been sidelined, very much like Mohammed Shami. Over the last few seasons, Bhuvi has worked on his fitness, pushed more speed into his bowling, and even tightened up his action. The BCCI had to do some kind of adjustment for the coming T20I series versus Ireland and England, after Mohammed Siraj was told by the medical team that he should take rest. So, Gujarat Titans (GT) pacer Prasidh Krishna, replaced him in the squad. Still, Krishna didn’t really have a great time in his most productive IPL campaign this season or whatever you want to call it. Now his selection has started a proper debate, like whether India has genuinely moved on from Bhuvneshwar Kumar already. Age might be the main reason in all of this. Bhuvneshwar is 36, and by the time the next T20 World Cup comes around in 2028, he’ll be 38. Since the BCCI is pushing hard on young blood and long-term thinking, the senior bowlers are finding it harder to squeeze their way back into the lineup. Also Read: India’s White-Ball Tour of England Set for July 2026: Full Details Instead of getting ready for Bhuvneshwar’s return, the team management seems more interested in handing younger quick bowlers the kind of global exposure that helps them grow. Bhuvi usually works around the 130-135 kmph mark, but Team India now looks for bowlers who can keep reaching 140-145 kmph, or even surpassing it more often. That’s why names like Harshit Rana, Arshdeep Singh, and a handful of other fresh pacers have really upped the fight for places. Also, Bhuvneshwar’s patchy presence in first-class cricket has weighed on his prospects in the red-ball game. Meanwhile, the younger specialist group has been making a mark in T20Is, specially in the death-over phase, where roles are super specific. Still, his present form should not be brushed aside. The experienced pacer ought to be given chances in bilateral series, and since he has contributed to India across different formats, he really does deserve a proper goodbye from international cricket whenever that final chapter is ready to close.