Team India will be locking horns with Sri Lanka in the second game of the three-match ODI series at the Eden Gardens in Kolkata. The Indian wrist-spinner, Kuldeep Yadav had a sour stint with Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) but won hearts at Eden Gardens with a beautiful delivery on Wednesday.
India seized control of the second ODI on Wednesday as their spinners earned quick back-to-back scalps to leave the visitors in a spot of bother. At the time of writing, the Lions were already 7 wickets down for a score of 168 at the end of 33 overs, despite the islanders managing an impressive second-wicket partnership of 73 runs at over run-a-ball.
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Kuldeep Yadav provided the much-needed breakthrough for the Men in Blue on the last ball of the 17th over, trapping in-form Kusal Mendis plumb in front of the wicket. The batter looked well set on 34 off 34 balls but had kept his attacking shots for the pacers, proceeding with caution against the spinners.
The ball pitched around the middle stump and a wary Mendis rocked back on his feet, only to be completely deceived by a topo-spin delivery. The ball came down with the angle and beat the outside edge of the bat and thumped into the 27-year-old’s back pad. The umpire did not hesitate to raise his finger and even though Mendis immediately signaled a DRS review, replays showed the ball was comfortably clipping the top of the middle and off stumps.
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Having spent seven years at KKR with appearances coming few and far, the bowler’s relationships with the club had come under the scanner by the time he was released in 2021. However, the left-arm leg spinner’s reputation amongst the Kolkata crowd remained joyous, as was evident by the voracious ovation he received upon scalping the crucial wicket.
Here is the video of the dismissal:
https://twitter.com/minibus2022/status/1613469488095297540?s=20&t=MdDZLorRWsZzbEtVHVJMBA
Kuldeep Yadav and Axar Patel strike twice in just three balls.
— Faiz Fazel (@theFaizFazel) January 12, 2023
Kuldeep Yadav and Axar Patel strike twice in just three balls.
📸: Disney + Hotstar pic.twitter.com/Vv06TgZCkf
— . (@Gova_018) January 12, 2023
Kuldeep Yadav and Axar Patel strike in their first over!
📸: Disney+Hotstar#KusalMendis #DhananjayadeSilva #ViratKohli #KuldeepYadav #AxarPatel #INDvSL #INDvsSL #India #TeamIndia #IndianCricketTeam #SriLanka #SriLankaCricketTeam #SLC #ODI #ODIs #Cricket #Sportsbettingmarkets pic.twitter.com/LK7Zp2KWZm
— SBM Cricket (@Sbettingmarkets) January 12, 2023
Virat Kohli is more happier than Kuldeep Yadav for the wicket. This guy is such a joy. ♥️#INDvSL #INDvsSL pic.twitter.com/wP9SEqeSMm
— Akshat (@AkshatOM10) January 12, 2023
Kuldeep needs to take 6 wickets, Last he took 5 wickets and he was dropped next game.
2nd ODI #INDvsSL #INDvSL #kuldeepyadav— Ankush Tahlani (@ankush_tahlani) January 12, 2023