After warming the bench during the entire Test tour of England, Indian wrist-spinner Kuldeep Yadav is currently making the batters dance to his tunes in the Asia Cup 2025.

Kuldeep returned with the figures of 4/7 and 3//18 in India’s first two Group A matches against the UAE and Pakistan, respectively.

Ahead of the final group-stage fixture against Oman, Kuldeep opened up on his priority, citing that he needs to take wickets to continue featuring in the playing XI.

"If I play in any team, I will play as a (specialist) bowler. My job is to take wickets. If I don't take wickets, there will be no place for me. It is very important to understand that when you play as a proper bowler, your job is to take wickets for the team," Kuldeep told reporters.

Widely deemed as India's most versatile spinner of current times, Kuldeep made it clear that he doesn't want to put all eggs in one basket by trying to transform himself into a bowling all-rounder.

Instead, Kuldeep preferred to fine-tune his skills, improve his fitness, and increase the volume of his bowling before he received opportunities again. It paid dividends as he has earned back-to-back Player of the Match award in the continental event.

When asked if there was a clear communication from head coach Gautam Gambhir, Kuldeep replied: "No, there was clear communication. Sometimes, in 3-4 matches, I felt that I could play, but unfortunately, I couldn't play.

"Gauti bhai (Gambhir) was very straightforward. Sometimes, I felt that I could play, but as you know, because of the batting combination, I couldn't. But there was nothing about skill or batting," he added.

The two months in England were spent honing new skills and have a few new tricks up his sleeve.

"When you don't play, you learn a lot and you become a better player. Because you have a lot of ideas about how to react in a situation. It is very easy to blame someone. And it is very tough to accept things in your stride and strive to improve," Kuldeep said.

"What am I weak at? What should I work on? How should I become a better player? There are two ways. The player chooses which path he wants to travel.

"But it is very important that you keep working hard. Don't leave anything. When you don't play, you have time to work on yourself.

"And become a better player when you get a chance. But practice sessions are done to improve any skill," he explained.

Kuldeep was also very critical of his own bowling, saying that he doesn't feel like performing at his full potential.

"I don't think I am bowling that well. But I think I can improve and become better. Sometimes, you make a mistake in reading the batsman in this format. When you are at the top of a team and make small mistakes, you don't notice it.

"But you feel that you have made a mistake. I still have to work on that. I think I need to work more in bowling because there are more formats."

Looking at how the team management thinks, is he working a bit more on his batting, and his answer is refreshingly surprising. "I am not worried about batting. Whenever we get an opportunity to bat during the next session, I generally bat. It is very important to bat in the game. That is the most important thing for any batter who wants to improve his batting. But obviously, I have been working a lot on my batting."

(With PTI Inputs)