Former Indian Test opener Wasim Jaffer is hopeful that the veteran pace duo of Mohammed Shami and Bhuvneshwar Kumar will get their chances for the upcoming New Zealand tour. Jaffer reckons if Shami doesn’t get picked for the series against the Kiwis, then the selectors are looking beyond him.

Shami scalped 37 wickets in the previous Ranji Trophy season for Bengal and ended as the second-highest wicket-taker as a pacer after Auqib Nabi Dar. Furthermore, the veteran pacer recently scalped seven wickets in three matches of the Duleep Trophy while playing for East Zone.

On the other hand, Bhuvneshwar Kumar scalped 28 wickets in 16 matches of IPL 2026 and played an instrumental role in taking RCB to glory. The swing bowler ended the tournament as the second-highest wicket-taker. 

Jaffer said Shami and Kumar have performed consistently in the domestic circuit and thus deserve their chances.

“I am excited to look at the New Zealand series. I am hopeful for Shami. If he is not picked there, it is clear that selectors are looking beyond him. Even Bhuvi’s case is saddening. It feels bad when someone is performing, has good fitness, and the numbers are there. I have gone through these things, so I understand how it feels,” Wasim Jaffer said on his YouTube Channel.

The former domestic giant added that Bhuvneshwar Kumar should have had a longer career in the white-ball formats, especially T20Is.

“Bhuvi should have played more. Test cricket, he had injury issues, yes. There, the workload is more. He may not have been able to handle it, but for sure, in white-ball and especially T20, his career should have been longer,” Wasim Jaffer added.

Kumar recently scalped 14 wickets in 11 matches of the UP T20 League 2026 while leading Lucknow Falcons.