ICC World Cup 2019 | Whatever happens, me and Kuldeep Yadav need MS Dhoni, says Yuzvendra Chahal
Yuzvendra Chahal has stated that he and Kuldeep Yadav need MS Dhoni to guide them with their plans, irrespective of the situation of the game. The former had made his debut in 2016 followed by the latter a year later and the leg-spinner duo have been bowling for India in tandem since then.
Yuzvendra Chahal had made his debut for India in June 2016 following a fantastic season for Royal Challengers Bangalore in the Indian Premier League. Kuldeep Yadav’s debut in Tests followed in less than a year and in a few months he made his debut even in limited overs. Since then, the duo have formed a formidable partnership with MS Dhoni being the big driving force with his advice from behind the stumps. Given Dhoni’s game reading skills, he very rarely goes wrong and Chahal was quick to point out the duo requires his support.
“Whatever happens, you need Mahi bhai. We still obey what he says. He intervenes when we go wrong. It was the same when we first arrived. Even today, if we plan something of our own, we feel the need to talk to him about it,” Chahal told TOI.
Chahal has 72 wickets in 41 ODI whereas Kuldeep has 87 wickets in 44 games, and both of them have been India’s go-to wrist-spinners in recent times. Leg-spin has gained traction around the world and leggies have become the most sought after due to their wicket-taking abilities. Chahal feels that they both don’t really have to make any changes according to conditions in order to stay ahead of others.
“We are feeding off the confidence of each other. We have done well in all conditions and we have realized that we need to do the same thing. We don't have to change according to conditions,” he explained.
Chahal had even represented Mumbai Indians in the Indian Premier League from 2011 to 2013 and only went on to play a single match in 2013. However, he bowled in a match-winning spell in the Champions League finals which put him on the radar of Royal Challengers Bangalore. Even Kuldeep was in the MI side at the age of 17 in 2012 but never got a game. Both the Haryana and Uttar Pradesh players have known each other since then, as pointed out by the former.
“It feels nice to know that our partnership works. We know each other for seven-eight years. We were together at the Mumbai Indians. We trust each other. If I have a bad over, I know he will try to cover it up from the other end by being a bit defensive so that I can make a good comeback in my next over,” remarked the 28-year-old.
Kuldeep had a poor season in the cash-rich league as he only picked up four wickets in nine innings before being dropped. Chahal said that he spoke to the southpaw during his rough phase.
“It's very important. We do talk to each other over phone. He's like my younger brother. You need a few people to talk to you when you are down. When I have a rough phase, he talks to me. When we are not with the team, we like to be in our personal space but it's important to keep in touch too,” concluded the former Chess player.
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