Born on 14th December 1994, India’s left-arm wrist-spinner Kuldeep Yadav is celebrating his 29th birthday today.
Kuldeep first grabbed the headlines with his exploits during the ICC U-19 World Cup 2014 in UAE and also made his first-class debut for Uttar Pradesh that year. He was later signed by Kolkata Knight Riders in 2014 and played for them till the IPL 2021 season.
With his consistent performances, Kuldeep caught the attention of the national selectors and went on to make his India debut during a Test match against Australia in Dharamsala in March 2017. He made his ODI and T20I debuts some months later in 2017.
While Kuldeep didn’t get regular chances in Test cricket due to R Ashwin and Ravindra Jadeja’s brilliance, he became a regular feature in India's white-ball setup.
As of today, Kuldeep Yadav has played a total of 101 ODIs and claimed 167 wickets. He has also taken 53 wickets in 33 T20Is and 34 scalps in 8 Tests.
Kuldeep is the first Indian bowler to take two hat-tricks in ODIs and also the quickest Indian spinner to pick 150 ODI wickets. He has been part of two Asia Cup-winning squads in 2018 and 2023.
In the Indian Premier League, Kuldeep Yadav has bagged 71 wickets in 73 matches while playing for Kolkata Knight Riders and Delhi Capitals.
On his 29th birthday, wishes poured in for Kuldeep Yadav on social media from the Indian cricket fraternity.
Here are the tweets: