'He only struggled against Bhuvneshwar Kumar' - Mark Boucher on Temba Bavuma's poor run in India T20Is

South Africa coach Mark Boucher, speaking about Proteas captain Temba Bavuma’s run of form, insisted that his struggles were only against one bowler, Bhuvneshwar Kumar. The South African coach asked to give Kumar the credit where it is due, adding that most of them also struggled against the Indian pacer in the recently concluded T20I series between India and South Africa.

Boucher said that Kumar was a “fantastic” bowler in these conditions, talking about the latter’s performance in the five-match series. The former South African cricketer feels that it was difficult for Bavuma to adjust to one particular bowler during the series. “Temba (Bavuma) struggled during the tour. There’s no doubt,” Boucher was quoted as saying by ESPNcricinfo. “But he only really struggled against one bowler and that was (Bhuvneshwar) Kumar.”

Let’s give credit to Bhuvneshwar Kumar where it’s due: Mark Boucher

“Most of the guys struggled against him. Let’s give him credit where it’s due. Kumar is a fantastic bowler in those conditions,” said Boucher. Bhuvneshwar was adjudged as the Player of the Series for his performance with the ball, picking up six wickets in four innings bowling 14 overs at an economy rate of just over six. 

Boucher added, “There were times when the ball was swinging a lot which makes him very, very dangerous. Also, the ball was up and down a lot, especially with the new ball. We look at it as coaches and say how do we have a look at that particular bowler and how do we give him (Bavuma) more options? It’s quite difficult for him to change up during a series where you basically travel-play, travel-play. To come into a series, T20, as an opening batter, you’ve got to go from the get-go, that was always going to be quite tough for him, especially against Kumar. With other bowlers his strike rates are fine. There’s no issue there.”

The five-match series ended at 2-2 and the trophy was shared by the two teams after the game was washed out in the fifth match at M. Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru. Bavuma ended the series with only 61 runs in four innings with a top score of 35 and a strike rate of 103.38. He is currently recovering from an elbow injury that he suffered in the fourth T20I against India.