Bhunvneshwar Kumar feels lucky that he will get to pick Rahul Dravid’s brains in Sri Lanka

Indian veteran pacer Bhuvneshwar Kumar will be in action during the tour of Sri Lanka. Kumar has been appointed as the deputy captain to this new look Indian side comprising mostly of youngsters and uncapped players. With the likes of Test regulars in Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma, and Jasprit Bumrah busy in England, India would be able to test its squad depth against Sri Lanka.

Former India great and National Cricket Academy head Rahul Dravid will lead the Indian team as head coach. Dravid has transformed the culture of cricket in the country and under his tutelage, several youngsters have been fast-tracked to the national side and they have performed incredibly well.

Bhunveshwar Kumar had never had the opportunity to work with Dravid before. Speaking to Star Sports, the veteran pacer acknowledged his privilege at sharing a dressing room with Rahul Dravid and called himself lucky.

“I have played against him (Rahul Dravid) and he was a part of the RCB team just when I got inducted into the team. So, I don’t have any such memories with him, but when I got to the NCA, we did have some chats,” Bhuvneshwar told Star Sports.

“I wanted to work with him and I am lucky that he is the coach. The young players have played under him for India A. So, we want to work under him and pick his brain and want to understand how he manages things at that level for such a long time,” he added.

Bhuvi also shed light on his role as vice-captain of the side and mentioned that he doesn’t feel a lot will change given that he’s already a senior player in the national set-up. Kumar also said that he will help the youngsters improve their skills and their mental health.

“Yes, on paper, it is my role (vice-captain), but I don’t think things will change. I think being a senior player my role is to do things that help other players in improving their skills and mental health. Being the vice-captain of Team India is an honour and a responsibility. So, I will try to continue doing the things that I have been doing and hope our team does well on this tour,” Bhuvneshwar concluded.