A new spin: Kuldeep Yadav finds his rhythm

The wrist-spinner could be a regular match-winner for India but his performances haven't always matched up to his potential.

Ever since Kuldeep Yadav turned the game around in his first Test match in March 2017, against Australia at the HPCA Stadium in Dharamsala, everyone's got hooked on his bowling. The art of wrist spin can be mesmerising and he had turned on the magic in a series decider between the world’s top teams on a beauty of a pitch.

Kuldeep Yadav shows the ball after taking five wicket during the first Test cricket match day third between Bangladesh and India (AP)

Whenever Yadav has come on to bowl after the four-wicket haul on debut, he generates interest, the viewer expects something special. For a while, he kept up the impressive performances. In January 2019, there was another five-wicket haul against Australia at Sydney, and Indian fans were celebrating the discovery of a genuine match-winner.

But things didn’t go as planned. His form dipped. His confidence disappeared. And now, it has become about watching each game to check whether his rhythm is back.

His performance last week against Bangladesh in the first Test at Chattogram raised hopes that he could be on the way to finding his best form. In India’s 188-run win, Yadav made the difference with an eight-wicket match haul (5 for 40 and 3 for 73), underlining how important a wrist spinner can be in all formats of the game.

As Bangladesh prepare for the second Test, the bowler from the India side they will be looking to counter is Yadav. It is a fine turnaround for the bowler who made his first Test appearance after 22 months. A lot of work has gone behind the scenes for Yadav to sort out his game.

“We had worked on getting his rhythm, which was a success," said his childhood coach Kapil Pandey. "When your rhythm is good, everything else is good. In the second innings, the pitch had slowed down, but in that also he bowled well, as he was leaning forward and delivering with force behind the ball, he maintained the pressure."

Former India left-arm spinner Venkatpathy Raju, who was commentating on the game, said bowling a longer spell helped settle the nerves. Raju liked the fact that “Yadav was not trying to pick wickets, he was trying to bowl well."

“He was more relaxed. Coming back after a long time initially you are under pressure, you want to pick wickets, so he was little tighter. Later on, as he started bowling the rhythm started coming in. Everything was looking perfect. That’s why the longer spells are important, to get the rhythm and bowl with a relaxed style. he was looking more comfortable, bowling at around 80 kmph (in the first Test)”

While facing him in the first innings, the Bangladesh batters looked like cats on a hot tin roof. He was imparting high revs on the ball. And that allied with the drift and dip he was getting made things difficult for the batter. This was a result of working on the finer points.

“We increased the speed with rhythm, getting the weight transfer going by pivoting. Then we say “power in hand”, which means there should be strength in your wrist and forearm, and the shoulder should be flexible. He has to keep his right hand (non-bowling) a little firm to avoid releasing the ball early. It was supporting his bowling release. He used all this and this should be maintained," says Pandey, explaining the subtleties of spin bowling.

“When we lift the leg, our body alignment becomes number 4 (at the time of release). When he bowls in the number 4 position, his rhythm is good. If he doesn’t raise his leg well, then the spinner struggles somewhere. if proper body alignment is not there, he may start using his shoulder or wrist (more than he should). Lift your leg and make the ball dance...”

This has been generally a good year for Yadav. Doing well in T20 games was the first target for him, says Pandey. The focus in the preparation for the IPL was to bowl slightly quicker through the air. It worked and he took 21 wickets in 14 games for Delhi Capitals. It paid off when he was picked for the three-match ODI series last October against South Africa, and he did well to finish with six wickets.

“The more he bowls, the better he will be, that’s why I am a firm believer, whenever you are coming back, after an injury or whatever happens (form issues), always come back and play a three-day or a four-day game. It can be a league match also, doesn’t have to be a Ranji game," says Raju.

Yadav's form means India has an ideal spin combination going into the second Test. Ashwin is the leader of the attack, while even Axar Patel and Yadav complement each other due to their differing strengths. "The combination was in such a way, that Axar was more confident bowling with the harder ball, where extra bounce and turn is there. When the ball got slightly older, Kuldeep played a bigger role,” says Raju.

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