Former India bowling legend Anil Kumble feels the side should back Kuldeep Yadav in the playing XI in the second Test at Vizag. Team India suffered a huge defeat in the opening Test by 28 runs after being in control of the game with a 190-run first-innings lead as well. However, the home spinners were not very effective as Ollie Pope’s stunning 196 in the second innings helped them take a huge lead. While ace pacer Jasprit Bumrah did well for India in the match, Mohammed Siraj couldn’t do well.

Speaking to Jio Cinemas, Kumble said, “I am not really sure whether you need a fourth spinner. But if India feels that they need only one fast bowler then having Kuldeep will certainly help. He will have variations but England will come and do the same things they did in Hyderabad. The wicket could be a turning one and we are expecting the pace to be quicker than this.”

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However, Kuldeep Yadav has been unlucky to miss out in Tests, courtesy of the consistency of the three frontline spinners Ravichandran Ashwin, Ravindra Jadeja and Axar Patel. Kuldeep claimed a match-high eight wickets, including a five-wicket haul in the first innings, in his last Test appearance against Bangladesh in 2022 as well. And, Anil Kumble asked the Indian batters to be more positive and assured in their footwork against spin as well.

“This was slow but it was a good wicket if you applied yourself. India certainly needs to buckle up with their approach to playing against spin because I felt the approach of a couple of batters wasn’t positive and even the footwork wasn’t what you expected. I also felt that they were certainly rattled by the way England approached their batting and with that, they have to come up with plans, some unconventional ones. They never tried any variations so that’s something I am sure they will be looking to do,” Anil Kumble concluded.