India’s Kuldeep Yadav managed to put in a sensational performance with the ball as he picked up a five-wicket haul on Day 1 of the fifth Test against England at Dharamsala. The spinner spoke about his performance after stumps were called.
Kuldeep revealed that he is enjoying his time on the field and has put in a lot of work since his knee injury back in 2021. Before the injury, he was not at his best and faced struggles with form ever since the World Cup in 2019. He said,” I am enjoying my game. To be honest I put a lot of hard work after my surgery in 2021. It’s just the reward I am getting now. I worked on my pace, it’s very important when you play a Test match in India. I am just enjoying my bowling.”
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Speaking on the wickets he took, the spinner mentioned some of the dismissals that he liked the most. He revealed,” I liked the Zak Crawley wicket. He batted well throughout the series, a good player of spin. It’s important not to think about the wicket and I am someone who relies on my skill and variation in length. Not to think about what the wicket is going to produce. Just focus on the areas.”
Crawley was looking in good touch and was set to go for a big innings, but Kuldeep managed to give his side the big wicket and put them in front with regular wickets early in the day.
The 29-year-old looked back to his younger days and mentioned how he has grown to become India’s premier spinner across all formats with his ability to pick wickets regardless of the formats. Kuldeep added,” When I was very young I used to overthink how to get the batter out. Slowly, slowly I matured as a spinner and focused on length.”
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The UP-based bowler also highlighted the inputs he got from his fellow team-mates Dhruv Jurel and Sarfaraz Khan which helped him in getting the wickets of Ollie Pope. The Englishman looked restless during his innings and the plans between them worked out as the batter was dismissed before scoring anything significant. “He (Pope) stepped out a bit early. (Jurel and) Even Sarfaraz was saying the same thing he is going to step out, he is not comfortable,” said Kuldeep.
He also mentioned the relationship between him and Ashwin who is playing his 100th Test and will know a thing or two when it comes to picking wickets considering he has crossed the 500 Test wickets milestone earlier in the series. “Ash (Ashwin) bhai says a few things on the field, gives a few ideas,” said Kuldeep.
So far in the series, the bowler has picked up 17 wickets in the four Tests he has taken part in and was a crucial element in India clinching the five-match affair. India will hope to see Kuldeep continue to perform to this level for the games to come.
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