Bhuvneshwar Kumar finished with 0/49 against New Zealand in his first international match since 2022. RCB coach Dinesh Karthik said, "It may have been a bit of nerves." The bowler looked rusty and bowled two no-balls. Despite this, India won the game by four wickets thanks to Sanju Samson’s half-century.

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Bhuvneshwar Kumar has finally bowled his first delivery since 2022 after returning to the Indian side. However, it was not the same shrewd and Sharp Bhuvneshwar who has been bowling for the Royal Challengers Bengaluru in the last couple of seasons; he looked a little rusty and bowled no-balls, which was very unlike him. RCB batting coach Dinesh Karthik looked at his game in the first T20I against New Zealand and said Bhuvneshwar might be a little nervous.

"It was the no-balls that did him in. He's not somebody who generally bowls no-balls. I am not sure why, but it may have been a bit of nerves," Karthik said on Cricbuzz.

"Two no-balls in a game is unheard of for him. So I would put it down to the fact that he's not as ready as he would want to be. But if we look closely, his first and last overs were very good. However, the second and third overs had no-balls in it and that reflects in his analysis, as those were huge overs," he added.

Bhuvneshwar's figures at the end of the game read 4-0-49-0.

"A lot of fans may be critical, but it's his first day back in international cricket. So cut him some slack. But he has to be aware that no-balls are not a habit he wants to develop. He knows he's better than that. But was he as good as he could be? Definitely not," said Karthik

However, despite his poor performance Sanju Samson's half-century and a masterful finishing act by Naman Dhir helped India beat New Zealand by four wickets.

Samson and Abhishek carried forward their strong form in the home T20I series that India played in the months leading up to this series, putting together an opening stand of 93 runs in just under six overs. It ended with Abhishek falling to an off-spinner again, a problem that has plagued him in recent games. This time, it was to Michael Bracewell off the penultimate ball of the powerplay after Abhishek had scored 29 in 12 balls.