The Indian chinaman, Kuldeep Yadav has conceded that he often misses MS Dhoni’s guidance from behind the stumps since the retirement of the former Indian skipper. Kuldeep reckons that he has been low on confidence after not getting enough game time both at the international level and at the Indian Premier League.
Kuldeep Yadav, who was known for his bowling partnerships with Yuzvendra Chahal conceded that they haven’t played a lot together since MS Dhoni retired from international cricket. Notably, the wrist-spin bowlers have played 44 matches together but none after MS Dhoni played his last international game at the 2019 World Cup. Kuldeep’s form has taken a massive dip as the 26-year-old has been left out of India’s squad for the England tour as well.
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Talking about the same during a recent chat with the Indian Express, Kuldeep Yadavsa id, “Sometimes I miss that guidance because he (Mahi) has a great experience. He used to guide us behind the wicket, kept screaming! Rishabh is there now, the more he plays, the more input he will give in the future. Ever since Mahi bhai left, Chahal and I haven’t played together. I played only a handful of games after Mahibhai left. I had even taken a hat-trick.”
Head coach Ravi Shastri had marked Kuldeep Yadav as the team’s No.1 spinner in overseas conditions after his 5-wicket haul in Sydney. However, he did not play a single Test for more than a couple of years. He got an opportunity to play Tests against England at home earlier this year but the wrist-spinner conceded he felt a lot of pressure during his comeback Test.
Kuldeep explained, “I didn’t play as many matches as I expected to, and somewhere I was low on confidence. When you are playing non-stop, players do feel high on confidence. The more one sits out the more it gets tougher. I felt a huge pressure on me when I played the Test against England in Chennai this February.”
The chinaman hasn’t benefitted from the lack of chances at his IPL franchise, KKR. The young spinner said he started questioning his quality after being benched for IPL 2021 matches in Chennai. Notably, KKR decided to include Harbhajan Singh, Sunil Narine, and Varun Chakravarthy but did not give a single game to Kuldeep.
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After having missed the berth to England, Kuldeep Yadav can be expected to find a place in the squad for Sri Lanka tour. India will field their white-ball specialists for 3 ODIs and as many T20Is in July.
