'Never realised pace is something that needs to be added,' says Bhuvneshwar Kumar

India's fast bowler Bhuvneshwar Kumar has said he never realised the importance of adding pace to his bowling early in his career before adding that once he did, it helped him "maintain the swing".

"To be honest, the first couple of years I didn't realise pace is something that needs to be added. As I kept playing, I realised with the swing I need to improve my pace because bowling in late 120kph or just 130kph, batsmen were adjusting to the swing. So, I wanted to increase the pace, but I didn't know how to do it," Bhuvneshwar said in a video posted by his Indian Premier League (IPL) team SunRisers Hyderabad on its Twitter handle.

The SRH pacer has been hit by injuries lately and hence, he was not picked for the upcoming World Test Championship (WTC) final against New Zealand and the subsequent five-match Test series against England.

"Fortunately, I was able to improve the pace, and that really helped me in the later stages. So yes, when you have pace, not the express 140-plus, but bowling in the mid-130kph helps to maintain that swing and keep the batsman guessing," he added.

The 31-year-old has picked 63 wickets in 21 Tests, 138 wickets in 117 One-Day Internationals (ODIs) and 45 wickets in 48 Twenty20 Internationals (T20Is). Bhuvneshwar is expected to play in the limited-overs series that has been scheduled against Sri Lanka with an eye on the upcoming T20 World Cup.