3 best performances from Kuldeep Yadav in international cricket

Kuldeep Yadav turns 29 today. The talented spinner has bowled very well for India in his career till now. The chinaman spinner has represented India in 8 Test matches, 101 ODIs, and 33 T20Is respectively. Statistically, Kuldeep averages 21.55 in the longest format, 25.86 in ODIs, and a meagre 14.79 in T20Is. Although he is not as rated as other spinners in the world, T20Is seem to be his best format for international cricket. The way Kuldeep bowls is like wizardry in action. It feels so good to watch him turn the ball either way and give revs to the ball by changing the pace. 

Yadav has claimed 34 wickets in Tests, 167 wickets in ODIs, and 53 wickets in T20Is respectively. His best was in 2018, when he was unplayable for the batters. Back then, he was like a mystery spinner who was hard to score against. even surviving in the middle was difficult against him. He had a rough patch in 2020 and 2021. Since 2022, Kuldeep has returned to his best form yet again. In the ODI World Cup 2023, Kuldeep bowled very well and probably went under the radar for the performances of other bowlers in the lineup. 

Here are his 3 best performances in international cricket till now:

3. 8/113 against Bangladesh

It was the first Test of the series between India and Bangladesh in 2022 at Chattogram. Batting first, India posted a fantastic total of 404 runs on the board, on the back of some useful knocks from the likes of Cheteshwar Pujara, Rishabh Pant, Shreyas Iyer, and Ravichandran Ashwin. Kuldeep Yadav himself scored 40(114) with the bat. Bangladesh was dismissed for a score of 150 in their first innings. Kuldeep was the pick of the bowlers, who claimed 5/40 in his 16 overs. The spell of the chinaman spinner included 6 maiden overs. He did seem unplayable in the innings. 

Kuldeep picked the wickets of Yasir Ali, Mushfiqur Rahim, Shakib Al Hasan, Taijul Islam, and Ebadot Hossain. India did not enforce a follow-on. They scored 258 runs in their second innings and asked Bangladesh to chase 513 runs. Defending it, Kuldeep bowled another good spell. The star spinner bowled 20 overs, claimed 3 wickets and conceded only 73 runs. Kuldeep picked the wickets of Ebadot, Shakib, and Litton Das. In the process, Kuldeep registered match figures of 8/113 in total, as India won the match by 188 runs. Kuldeep was awarded with the Player of the Match award.

2. 5/24 against England

It was the first T20I of the series against England in Manchester. The 29-year-old bowled one of the best spells by an Indian spinner in T20Is away from home. Against a world-class batting line-up, Kuldeep registered his career-best figures of 5/24 in his 4 overs. After England got a good start to their innings, thanks to a brilliant partnership between Roy and Buttler for the opening wicket, Kuldeep brought India back into the game. England were 50/0 in the fifth over. they ended up with a score of just 159 runs on the board at the end of the innings. The major damage was done by Kuldeep.

Umesh Yadav opened the floodgates by claiming the wicket of Roy. Kuldeep then ran through the middle order of England, which looked clueless. The left-arm spinner claimed the wicket of a set batter like Buttler. He then picked 4 wickets in almost a blink of an eye. Kuldeep outfoxed Alex Hales by dismissing him for 8(18). Eoin Morgan was dismissed for 7(6). Jonny Bairstow and Joe Root were both stumped for a golden duck, thanks to brilliant WK skills from MS Dhoni. India won the match by 8 wickets, as KL Rahul scored an unbeaten hundred while chasing the target. 

1. 6/25 against England

It was the first ODI of the series against England in Nottingham. Kuldeep was at his peak and bowled a spell for ages. On a flat wicket, Yadav got the ball to turn miles. Against a batting lineup that was known for sparing no bowler in the world, Kuldeep bowled a sensational spell. It was arguably the best bowling spell of the decade by a spinner. All the other bowlers in the match were expensive. But Kuldeep was not just miserly, but wickets as well. The star spinner claimed 6 wickets from the top 8 batters, which made the spell a lot more special. 

Kuldeep dismissed both the set openers, the dangerous Jason Roy and Jonny Bairstow. He then dismissed Joe Root and Ben Stokes. Kuldeep dismissed a dangerous batter like Jos Buttler and later got rid of David Willey. In his 10 overs, Kuldeep conceded just 25 runs and claimed 6 wickets. India won the match and Kuldeep was awarded the Player of the Match award without much surprise. In many of the bowling ratings, the spell of Kuldeep is regarded as one of the greatest ODI spells of all time.