There was clarity from Gambhir on omission in England: Kuldeep

All through India’s recent five-Test tour of England spanning six weeks, there was clamour for Kuldeep Yadav to unfurl his left-arm wrist-spin on surfaces that were drier than usual. But India’s insistence on having batting till No. 8 meant that the 30-year-old had to settle for ferrying drinks without the chance to give the red Dukes ball a good rip in the middle.

A frustrating period it must have been, but Kuldeep has responded in the best way possible at the Asia Cup: by scalping seven wickets in two matches and winning consecutive Player-of-the-Match awards. On the eve of India’s Group-A match against Oman, Kuldeep reflected candidly on the tough time in England.

“Challenges are there. If you play regular games, your rhythm is set. But obviously in England, seeing the conditions and the team combination, I didn’t get a place,” he said. “It was a very good time to work on myself, improving my fitness and bowling more and more volume because it is very important. I have learned a lot. You learn a lot when you do not play.”

Kuldeep said there was clear messaging from head coach Gautam Gambhir over his repeated exclusion. “There were 3-4 matches where I felt I could play, but unfortunately I couldn’t. The team needed batting depth. The communication was very clear. It was very straightforward from Gambhir. It is very easy to blame someone. But it is very tough to take something constructively and improve.”

Back in early 2022, the left-armer straightened his run-up and began running through the crease a lot quicker in order to increase his air speed. Does not playing regularly affect the technical aspects? “My rhythm is set now,” he said. “I don’t have that much of a problem with that. When I changed in the beginning, it took me a lot of time. But now I am used to it.”