Ahead of this series, Kuldeep Yadav had said to me, “There is this thing with spinners, which is ‘reading the batsmen’, that comes with time and experience. I personally think I have developed that sense of understanding the batsmen’s next move, especially due to my experience playing T20, where it is essential. And this skill is definitely going to help in red-ball cricket as well, to plan my strategy accordingly.
“It gives a bowler a different sense of confidence when the bowling style can be adjusted with the batsmen’s strength and weakness. So, the challenge here is to decide on the move, because the batsman on the other hand is also trying to predict your movement. But I feel I am in a frame to do that reading better.”
And as he said it, one could sense an excitement in Kuldeep. He was keen to make a difference. Grab the opportunity and make it count for India. Against an England batting unit that has hardly played quality left-arm wrist-spin, Kuldeep was always going to have a chance. But only if his team management and captain picked him.
For whatever reason, India decided not to. The reason given was balance. India needed balance, and here that meant more batting. As a result, Kuldeep – who has a decent defensive technique by the way – has been sitting out. After playing six bowlers here in Manchester on a wicket that did offer help, India conceded 669 runs in the first innings. The ‘balance’ did not work. Rather, it looked totally out of sync and the fallacy in the thought process was brutally exposed.
This is where it starts to get interesting. India played Shardul Thakur and Washington Sundar as bowling all-rounders. Shardul bowled 11 overs out of 157. Clearly, the captain doesn’t have faith in him. At Headingley, he was asked to bowl only after the 40th over, and here he bowled seven percent of the overs despite being the fourth seamer. If you don’t have faith, why play him? Doesn’t that impact balance? Doesn’t it increase the burden on Jasprit Bumrah and Mohammed Siraj, and make the attack lose teeth and muscle?
If Thakur bowled only 11, Anshul Kamboj just did not look like he belonged at this level. The fact that he last played a red-ball game six weeks ago – against England Lions – might have something to do with it. Morne Morkel, the bowling coach, came and said he had no idea why the pace dropped, and the only thing we can say about this selection is that it was a blunder. Out of the six, you had two bowlers who you did not think could do the job. And yet, you left Kuldeep out for the sake of balance.
Morkel will soon compete one year in his position as bowling coach. The ledger is all red. There is not one bowler who can be said to have improved under Morkel. If Abhishek Nayar could be sacked after the Australia tour, one wonders why and how Morkel keeps his job after this? Where is the accountability, and will questions not be asked? Under Morkel, India’s bowling cupboard looks depressingly bare and it is a sorry tale in every sense.
Coming back to Kuldeep, the man is doing everything to show a happy face. The fact is, you can’t. You are human, and you will feel hurt and let down. Your excitement will go down by the day, and your bowling in the nets will soon suffer. To turn up day in and day out without playing a game is hard, and Kuldeep will find it hugely difficult to come to terms with it.
Manchester is now done. But for the skill and fight shown by Shubman Gill, the captain, and KL Rahul, this could be one of the most embarrassing losses since the 36 all out in Adelaide (2020). But there remains a Test match to play at The Oval, and with the World Test Championship (WTC), every match counts. Points are at stake, as is pride. Will India course correct and get Kuldeep into the mix, or will they remain obstinate and keep him out? That decision could well define the direction in which Indian cricket is headed. Whether there is an attempt at introspection, or if it is all downhill from here.
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