Kuldeep Yadav has picked 9 wickets thus far in Asia Cup 2023.
India had posted 213 runs on the board against Sri Lanka on September 12 with Rohit Sharma scoring 53 and Ishan Kishan (33), KL Rahul (39), and Akshar Patel (26) contributing as well.
In reply, only Dhananjaya de Silva (41) and Dunith Wellalage (42*) resisted the Indian bowlers as Sri Lanka could only manage 172 runs and lost the game by 41 runs. For India, Kuldeep Yadav bowled 9.3 overs and gave away 43 runs for his four wickets.
This win helped India qualify for the final of the Asia Cup 2023 as well.
After the match, Kuldeep Yadav revealed how a 2-minute pep talk by teammate Suryakumar Yadav before the game helped him get going against the defending champions on Tuesday.
Asia Cup 2023: Worked on my wicketkeeping during recovery period in NCA, says KL Rahul
“You gave a pep talk before the game and asked me not to lose the grip in this game. A bowler’s body language changes after bagging a five-for. He gets relaxed, through the confidence remains. It often happens with a bowler. So, that two minutes of pep talk helped,” Kuldeep told Suryakumar Yadav in a conversation on bcci. tv.
“I was determined to give my best, given that we were back on the field for the third straight day. So, thanks for that, Surya Bhai,” he added.
Kuldeep Yadav also spoke about how he set up Sadeera Samarawickrama, who tried to go big against the wrist spinner but perished in the process. The wrist spinner also credited KL Rahul for helping him devise a plan to get the aggressive batter's wicket.
The batter stepped out to heave the ball on the leg-side but missed it completely. Rahul made no mistake in grabbing the ball and dislodging the stumps before the batter could make his ground.
“Since it was drifting too much, Rahul bhai advised me to keep the ball away from the off-stump. The length deliveries were not helping me to get wickets. So, when I bowled a bit wider, it drifted well and gave positive results. So, it was part of the plan. We did the same thing yesterday to get rid of Shadab. The idea was to utilize the spin by bowling away from the off stump. So, a big credit goes to Rahul as well,” Kuldeep said.