Kuldeep Yadav Opens Up on Comeback, England Snub, and Asia Cup Prep
Dubai, UAE: Indian spinner Kuldeep Yadav is making waves in the Asia Cup with back-to-back Player of the Match awards after returning to the playing XI. Ahead of India’s match against Oman, Kuldeep shared his thoughts on missing the Test tour of England and how sitting out helped him grow as a player.
India has already booked their spot in the Super Four stage of the Asia Cup 2024. They’ll face a struggling Oman side – yet to notch a win – in a low-stakes clash at Sheikh Zayed Stadium in Abu Dhabi on Friday. This Asia Cup match is more like practice for the Men in Blue, but Kuldeep is focused on keeping his rhythm sharp.
Talking at the pre-match press conference, Kuldeep opened up about the tough challenge of bowling in the tournament after nearly two months without a game during the England series. "Challenges are always there," he said. "When you play your first match, rhythm matters a lot. If you play regularly, you get into the groove – you know how to bowl, how to stay sharp in the field, and how to react to situations."
He didn’t get a spot in the England squad due to the conditions and team balance, but Kuldeep turned it into a positive. "It was a great time to work on myself, boost my fitness, and bowl more volume. As a player, you learn tons when you’re not playing. You watch the team handle pressure from the outside and think, ‘How would I react? How would I bowl?’ I picked up so many ideas."
Kuldeep also played in the Duleep Trophy to get back into form. "I bowled 35 overs without taking a wicket, but it set my rhythm. That was key for me," he added.
In just two Asia Cup matches so far, Kuldeep has grabbed seven wickets at an amazing average of 3.57. His standout moment? A stunning four-wicket haul against UAE. But the left-arm chinaman isn’t getting complacent. "I don’t think I’m bowling that well yet," he admitted. "I can improve a lot. In T20 cricket, you sometimes misread the batsman, and small errors slip by when you’re on top. I need to work on that – understanding how the ball feels in my hand across formats. Only I can judge if I’m truly happy with it."
On the Abu Dhabi pitch, Kuldeep sees hope for spinners. "It’s perfect – good bounce and zip, unlike the slow tracks during the ICC Champions Trophy. Back then, you had to rev the ball hard for extra pace."
Looking ahead to the Super Four clash against Pakistan on September 21, Kuldeep kept it cool. "Pakistan is just another team, just another game. No special plans – for me, it’s one batsman at a time."
He also praised head coach Gautam Gambhir for clear communication during his England bench time. "Gauti was straightforward. It was all about team combination and batting needs, not my skills. Sometimes I felt I could play in 3-4 matches, but the balance didn’t allow it. Still, I enjoyed the time off – learned a lot and came back stronger."
Kuldeep wrapped up with a message for young players: "Not playing teaches you the most and makes you better. It’s easy to blame others, but the hard part is looking inward – what are my weaknesses? How do I improve? You choose your path, but keep working hard."
India Squad: Abhishek Sharma, Shubman Gill, Suryakumar Yadav (c), Tilak Varma, Sanju Samson (w), Shivam Dube, Hardik Pandya, Axar Patel, Kuldeep Yadav, Jasprit Bumrah, Varun Chakaravarthy, Jitesh Sharma, Rinku Singh, Arshdeep Singh, Harshit Rana.
Oman Squad: Aamir Kaleem, Jatinder Singh (c), Hammad Mirza, Vinayak Shukla (w), Wasim Ali, Hassnain Shah, Shah Faisal, Jiten Ramanandi, Aryan Bisht, Shakeel Ahmed, Samay Shrivastava, Mohammad Nadeem, Sufyan Mehmood, Karan Sonavale, Ashish Odedara, Mohammad Imran, Zikria Islam, Nadeem Khan, Sufyan Yousaf.
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