Kuldeep will have to be more accurate with red ball, says Alec Stewart
Former England captain, Alec Stewart believes that Kuldeep Yadav will have to be more precise with his line and lengths with the red ball in the upcoming Test series against England. The China-man has created a positive impact in the English conditions post his performance in the T20Is and ODIs.
The left-arm wrist spinner was the highest wicket-taker in the three-match ODI series against England, picking up 9 wickets at an average of 16.44. He even took a fifer in the first match of the T20I series, before the English batsmen eventually got better at picking his variations as the series progressed. However, Stewart has been of the opinion that it will be a completely different scenario if Kuldeep gets included in the playing XI over seasoned campaigner R Ashwin for the first Test.
âI am a huge fan of Ashwin as can be seen from his performances. On the other hand, even Jadeja has shown his mettle against England. But if someone (Kuldeep) has got mystery, you should play him,â Stewart told PTI.
The former wicket-keeper batsman also stated that he believed Virat Kohli would like to play an attacking bowler like Kuldeep who will have more to offer than Ashwin or Jadeja. He felt that a left-arm wrist spinner would trouble the English batsmen more with his flighted deliveries as compared to Ashwin and Jadeja's orthodox flat deliveries. As a result, Kuldeep's bowling with the old ball would be more beneficial than the dot balls bowled by the seasoned bowlers.
âI personally feel that Virat is a positive captain and will back an attacking bowler like Kuldeep who will have more to offer than Ashwin or Jadeja,â he added.
Speaking of the practical problems that Kuldeep might face in the Test format, the 55-year-old said that the wrist spinner wonât have the luxury of the ODI field setting. He mentioned how the fielding restrictions helped Kuldeep get away with occasional bad balls in the shorter format and felt that the leg-spinner won't be as effective on the seaming tracks. On the other hand, he said that in the Tests India will not be able to set an attacking field which will allow the hosts to exploit the conditions at their convenience.
âIn this format, he (Kuldeep) will have to bowl to batsmen who will try to score in a positive way. He will have 4 fielders around the batsman rather than the boundary line. One gets away with a bad ball in ODIs and T20s, but can he repeat the same performances in the longest format,â Stewart said.
