During the recently held Test series in Australia, wrist-spinner Kuldeep Yadav was the only member of the original squad who didn’t make it to the playing XI despite India fielding 20 different cricketers through the course of the four-match series because of injury woes.
With Ravichandran Ashwin and Ravindra Jadeja missing out the final Test in Brisbane due to injuries, Kuldeep must have fancied his chances of leading the Indian attack in the series-decider but the Indian team management opted to go with Washington Sundar.
Despite being overlooked in Australia, Kuldeep remains in good spirits and the 26-year-old is looking to grab his chance in the upcoming Test series against England at home, starting February 5 in Chennai.
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In an exclusive interview with Sportstar, Kuldeep admitted that he was a bit disappointed for not getting any opportunity Down Under.
“I would not call it challenging, but yes, I did not get opportunities. There was a bit of disappointment for sure, but since the team did well, it did not matter much. I was definitely expecting to play, however, that was not possible due to the team combination. Maybe, I did not fit into the combination, but then, the team put up a brilliant show. The way we won the series was outstanding. I believe apna time aayega (my time will come) in the England series, and whenever I get an opportunity, I will try to deliver,” he said.
When asked how he kept himself motivated despite not making it to the playing XI, Kuldeep replied: “It was actually quite difficult to stay inside bubble for long so long and then focus on the game. But the captain and the team management had told us that we should not think much about all those factors, and should focus on the game. The objective was simple - we had gone there to play, so the whole focus on performing well and clinch the series.”
“We, obviously, did not get off to a good start in the series and after that debacle in Adelaide (where India lost the first Test after being bundled out for 36 in the second innings), we had a discussion the next day. Ravi bhai (head coach Ravi Shastri) said that we should now treat it as a three-match series and prepare accordingly. All the players have always put the team first and we did not think about what was happening around. Our only target was to play well and bounce back in the series. The team had a fighting spirit throughout.”
Sundar was preferred over Kuldeep at the Gabba because of better batting capabilities. Moreover, injury to pacer Jasprit Bumrah saw T Natarajan making his debut in the fourth Test as India decided to go with four pacers.
When enquired if he expected to get picked in Brisbane after Ashwin was ruled out, Kuldeep said: “You have to prepare yourself in such a way so that whenever an opportunity comes your way, you are ready for the challenge. I was ready till the final Test. Yes, there were injury woes ahead of the final Test and we knew that some of our players won’t be available, but we decided to stick to our plans. We would discuss on how our field set up be, or what would be the strategy, rather than thinking about who’s injured. I had my goals set. When we reached Brisbane, I thought maybe I could get a chance to play, but after a look at the wicket - which appeared to be slightly green - it was decided that we would go for four fast bowlers. That was the correct decision.”
Kuldeep, who has taken 24 wickets in 6 Tests, also spoke about his ambitions for the home series against England.
“England played good cricket against Sri Lanka and the team is in good form. They have handled the spinners well in Sri Lanka. But at the same time, there will be a slight difference between the SG balls and the Kookaboora balls, so players will gave to adjust a bit. Whenever England comes for Tests, they are well-prepared,” he stated.
