Kuldeep Yadav claimed that he has spent a significant amount of time with experienced all-rounder Ravindra Jadeja, both on and off the field. He revealed that in preparation for India’s forthcoming five-match Test series, which starts on June 20, he has been studying under Jadeja and picking his brain.
Kuldeep Yadav has played a single Test match in England till now. However, the versatile skills of Jadeja place him as the favourite to be the lead spinner of the team into the tour. Kuldeep will feature in the playing XI in the case of the pitch conditions where two spinners will be preferred.
“Playing alongside Jadeja is such a great honour for me. Obviously, Jadeja and [R] Ashwin have been brilliant over the last few years. When I made my debut in India, they helped me a lot. And even now, we have been having a lot of chats about how to bowl to certain batters, given the way the England batters are batting at the moment.”
Kuldeep Yadav
“I’m actually spending a lot of time with him, not only on the field, but also outside as well. So it has actually helped me a lot in terms of tactics and the field placements, and he has given some tips as well.”
Kuldeep Yadav
No one can take Rohit bhai’s place: Kuldeep Yadav
Kuldeep Yadav also said that he made it a point to sit next to Rohit Sharma on the team bus because he (Rohit Sharma) sits in the same position every day and he wants to learn things hanging out with him. He confessed that he gets whatever chance he can to learn with Ravichandran Ashwin having retired; he tries to learn when any of the senior players is available.
“I can never take Rohit bhai’s place. It’s just that I’m spending a lot of time with Jaddu bhai. It’s obviously very important for me as a spinner, because Ash bhai [Ashwin, also retired] isn’t there, and I’ve learned a lot from Ash bhai, and now that he isn’t there, [I’m looking to learn from] whichever senior player is there.”
Kuldeep Yadav
