Over the last couple of months, Kuldeep Yadav, one of India’s premier spinners, might have wondered whether he had lost his rhythm. With India looking to balance the side with an all-rounder, Kuldeep wasn’t picked for the England Tests. He also couldn’t find his mojo in the one Duleep Trophy game that he played before the 2025 Asia Cup.
However, in both the Asia Cup games, he has befuddled the batters with his bagful of tricks. The resultant outcome is that he has picked seven wickets.
Ahead of India’s final fixture of the group phase against Oman, this was what Kuldeep had to say about his rhythm.
“Challenges will always be there, if you play games regularly, it will help,” he said. “In England, due to the conditions and the team combination, I couldn’t find a place.”
He added: “But it was a quality time for me to work on my game. I worked on my fitness. I went wicketless in the Duleep Trophy but it was a valuable experience for me to bowl so many overs. It is quite a learning opportunity when you don’t play.”
So, that brings up the question as to whether the Indian management communicated to him about the reasons for his exclusion in England. Kuldeep observed: “Clear communication (there was clear communication from the management). In four matches, I was close to playing, but the team needed batting depth.”
He also said: “The message was very clear — it wasn’t about my skills or batting, it was just about the team combination. As a bowler, my primary job is to take wickets, and I’m also working on improving my batting.”
Kuldeep has bagged 18 wickets in eight limited overs games versus Pakistan. So, does he get that little bit of extra motivation while playing arch-rivals Pakistan? On his part, Kuldeep had a simple answer.
“When you step onto the field, it’s just a batter in front of you. I have always approached it this way against Pakistan,” he noted.
India have already qualified for the Super 4 of the tournament. And they are also expected to dominate Oman in their next group game.
Kuldeep, though, pointed out that in a T20 game, one can’t take any side lightly. “In T20 cricket, no team is bad. They have experience. We will try to maintain our intensity.”
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