Kuldeep Yadav Sent Blunt Reminder After England Tests Snub: "Got Limitations..."
Kuldeep Yadav sat out the entire tour of England as India drew the five-match Test series 2-2.
- Kuldeep Yadav missed the entire England Test tour as India drew 2-2 in the series
- Kuldeep must improve his batting to fit into India’s Test team plans, says Robin Uthappa
- "With all due respect to Kuldeep's prowess with the ball, he's got limitations to his batting," said Uthappa
Former India wicketkeeper Robin Uthappa has revealed the condition under which spinner Kuldeep Yadav can play more Tests for the team in the near future. His remarks came after Kuldeep sat out the entire tour of England as India drew the five-match Test series 2-2. There were discussions to play Kuldeep in a couple of matches, but the Gautam Gambhir-led support staff eventually went with two spin-bowling all-rounders in Ravindra Jadeja and Washington Sundar. Speaking on his YouTube channel, Uthappa suggested Kuldeep needs to improve his batting to fit into the plans of the current management.
"Put Kuldeep in the 11 and make sure you're batting is still in a state where none of the fans will go after the team management or the captain. With all due respect to Kuldeep's prowess with the ball, he's got limitations to his batting. That's going to take a lot of effort from his side," said Uthappa.
Uthappa gave the example of former India spinner Ravichandran Ashwin, who played 106 Tests for the team.
"Ashwin has got 5-6 Test hundreds. If he can do that at the lower middle batting order, say at number eight or nine, then he will certainly play more Tests," he added.
In a separate discussion, former India pacer RP Singh also weighed in on Kuldeep not featuring in any of the Tests.
attributed this to the team management's preference for all-rounders.
"There's no doubt that every player wants to be in the playing XI. From the first match of the series, India decided to strengthen the batting. To deepen the batting lineup, the team preferred all-rounders. That's why Kuldeep didn't get to play," he said.
"If the team had prioritized bowling strength, then Kuldeep would have played. Washington Sundar partially filled the spin bowler role. But I believe there were two or three pitches where Kuldeep could have been very effective. But these things happen in cricket, if not today, then there will be opportunities in the future."
(With PTI Inputs)
India Cricket Team
England Cricket Team
Kuldeep Yadav
Robin Uthappa