Kuldeep Yadav took another hat-trick in the second ODI against West Indies on Wednesday. His best bowling performance came under pressure after a long time. Kuldeep, who was a regular face from 2017 to early 2019 in the Indian squad, faced a tough time which started from the last IPL and after a disappointing World Cup, he was even dropped for four months. However, with this hat-trick, he became the first Indian cricketer to claim two hat-tricks in International Cricket.
“The last 10 months were very tough for me. After consistent performances, there comes a phase when wickets don’t come by and you start thinking more about your bowling. After World Cup, I was dropped from the team, then I worked really hard for four months,” Kuldeep Yadav said after his second international hat-trick in India’s 107-run win against the West Indies.
“The T20 against West Indies in Mumbai was my first match for India in four months. I was a bit nervous as there was a bit of gap and I hadn’t played international cricket during that phase. Performance wise, this hat-trick will be at the top of the list because pressure was on me and it was a result of 4-5 months of hardwork,” he added.
He was also asked about what was going through his mind before the hat-trick ball where he said that he was confused. During his slump in form, he didn’t think about bad bowling or if he needs a bit more planning on variation.
Read here: Jacques Kallis Appointed As South Africa Batting Consultant
“I was a bit confused which one to bowl the wrong ‘un or the chinaman. I thought wrong ‘un is the best option and I put a second slip there. I was thinking to bowl the off-middle line and if he misses then I will get the wicket. That was the plan,” he revealed. “I have worked on my variation, pace and accuracy which is why the pace that I have bowled in the last two ODIs had been great. The way I used my variations, I am very happy.”
“I think it is not about new variations but more about varying pace according to nature of the track. In India, the tracks are on the slower side and you need to mix it up sometimes fast, sometimes slow. Worked with Bharat Arun Sir and Ravi sir, both motivated me,” he said.
In the first ODI in Chennai, Kuldeep failed to take a single wicket for 48 runs but he feels that more than bad bowling it was good batting from Shai Hope and Shimron Hetmyer that sealed the deal.
“We bowled well in Chennai also. I think at times, we should give credit to batsmen also. The manner in which Hetmyer and Shai Hope batted was praiseworthy. They paced it well. When they felt, they attacked, when they felt, they defended. There were obviously areas which we could have improved, and that’s what we did over here,” he expressed.
“It feels amazing to get a hat-trick in Visakhapatnam. I have now got nine wickets from three ODIs over here all three wicket hauls. This ground has been good to me,” Kuldeep Yadav concluded.
