Kuldeep Yadav is ready to play as India’s lone spinner in away Tests, says Mentor Brad Hogg
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Kuldeep Yadav ended the SA tour picking up 17 wickets which made KKR mentor Brad Hogg to say that he is ready to play as India’s lone spinner in the away Tests from now on. He has also praised Kuldeep’s technical and tactical ability while adding that Kuldeep always knows where he has to improve.
Kuldeep made the headlines for all the right reasons after managing to scalp 17 wickets in the recently concluded ODI series in South Africa. He and bowling partner Yuzvendra Chahal played a starring role alongside Virat Kohli in inflicting a 5-1 win over the hosts in the six-match series. He has been enjoying a perfect start to his career as he has managed to pick up 39 ODI wickets in the 20 matches since his debut in 2017. Seeing his impressive form in the South African conditions, KKR mentor Brad Hogg has praised Kuldeep saying that he is ready to play as the lone spinner in Test matches in Australia and England.
“In Australia, you need someone with a lot of overspin, to go with the ability to rip it sideways too, and that’s the reason behind Nathan Lyon’s success here. Kuldeep can do it. 'What about England, India’s next assignment?' Oh, he is ready. A quality wrist spinner always does well against England. I know it’s hard on Ashwin and Jadeja, and if India can play Ashwin as the allrounder and squeeze in Kuldeep, it would be great. And if they need just one spinner, I think he is ready for it. He is not a T20 and ODI specialist, he is the real deal. Throw him in the Tests, I say!”, Hogg said as reported by The Indian Express.
Kuldeep was picked up by Mumbai Indians in the 2012 IPL auction but did not feature in any of the games for the three-time champions. He was then signed by KKR in the 2014 auctions and has been part of the side since then. He was nurtured by Hogg in the 2016 season and was benefited by his advice as the Indian Chinaman has managed to pick up 18 wickets in the 15 matches he has played in the IPL in the last two seasons. But now Kuldeep has become a regular bowler for the Indian side for the past one year in the limited overs format which has pleased Brad Hogg a lot.
“I have to say it has now reached a stage where I find myself just congratulating him on the recent achievements. Four years back, it used to be a lot more technical or strategical and tips if I had any, but now, it has reached nice little congratulatory notes,” said the former Australian bowler.
The 47-year-old Brad Hogg played an instrumental part in the development of the young Indian chinaman. The Aussie recalled how the young Indian star used to call
“It took me four years to convince him! I have huge respect for him as he respects his peers but he has also got to understand that he has worked extremely hard and has earned his stripes now. Mind you, he is pretty cheeky too, not shy about throwing the birthday cake at your face!,” said the Australian.
“When I met him four years ago, I felt he was a well-rounded young man. He worked bloody hard, listened a lot, asked questions; immediately you knew that here is a guy who is serious about his career.”
Hogg revealed that the two shared a great bond during their stint for KKR as they would not only talk about the game but also everything to do with the sport itself. Hogg, who is still playing competitive cricket at the ripe age of 47, also remembered that he had talked to Kuldeep about the importance of fitness in cricket.
“I remember telling him that cricket isn’t just about bowling; fitness can allow him to fully unearth his potential in every aspect,” revealed Brad Hogg.
When asked if he was surprised by the way he dismissed David Warner, with a flipper, in his debut Test in Dharamsala, Hogg quickly replied, “No, No, He has always had that thinking side; he is someone who thinks a lot about craft — and we have spent hours talking about how to set up a batsman. He has always had that. In other words, he is not going to be your fly-by-night operator.”
“He has the talent, he has the knack technically, tactically and mentally. He is very switched on. He knows where he wants to go. He knows his strengths, he knows his weaknesses, and he knows what areas he wants to work on.”
When a cricketer is young, he tends to take on the advice of others pretty quickly and tries to implement them without checking whether they might be right for him or not. Hogg revealed a similar case with his memory of Kuldeep Yadav but praised his attitude of telling Hogg about the advice that didn't work out for him.
“I would like him to straighten up in the delivery stride." And so the two had a chat. Soon, after a few sessions at the nets, Hogg remembers Kuldeep coming back and saying, “Sir, I am not going to do it. It’s not working for me.”
“You see there are many kids, who get a lot of advice from many people and get very eager to implement it to show they can. But you have to be very careful what works for you, and what doesn’t. I still think Kuldeep would be a better bowler if he manages to do that adjustment, but what works, in theory, isn’t going to turn out in practical terms. He is a self-aware individual, and he had no problems in telling me it wasn’t working for him.
"That’s probably the thing I have been impressed with him over the last year and a half. He has been able to improve, and yet not taking on things that would hold him back.There is a lot of knowledge out there, there are lots of people who have played the game, but we have to remember, what works for one player might not work for another player.”
Hogg believed that Kuldeep’s supple wrists allow him to get more revolutions on the leg break and that the youngster is able to rip it a lot more than he ever did and helped him out in perfecting the stock ball which is termed as the most devilish delivery to be bowled by a wrist spinner.
“Young spinners don’t often realize the importance of stock ball. The variations work because they are variations, you know. Kuldeep gets that. You won’t see him trying too many different things in a spell, at least in the longer formats,” said the former KKR player.
Kuldeep’s variations in pace and various kinds of deliveries have brought him a lot of success in the international cricket in the last one and a half year.
“Drastic reductions in pace doesn’t work in longer formats. It’s those little variations that do the trick: it’s what draws the batsmen forward into a loose drive when he shouldn’t and induce mistakes.The way he can deliver the leggie, the wrong’un and the back spinner – he has got a lot of variations already. It’s in these little things, variations, that he is going to get more effective. I have seen him of late grow leaps and bounds. He keeps it simple. This is his true character. He doesn’t get too far ahead of himself. He knows what works for him.Your intuition comes into play with more experience at the higher level. He is developing a lot quicker than a lot of others. And that goes back to his character: willing listener, and willing to think and work harder,” said Hogg on Kuldeep’s performance in the last one year.
“It’s all about the Indian team. I think Virat Kohli and Ravi Shastri have done a fantastic job in embracing characters. Young players are being treated as equal. You have to obviously respect the people who take decisions, but in general what I hear is there is no segregation, no dominating hierarchy. I think they are a very close unit. You can tell it from the how happy the young players like Kuldeep are in the set-up.”
