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Former bowling coach Bharat Arun recalls a moment that then India head coach Ravi Shastri had with Kuldeep Yadav about his fitness.
“This puppy fat of yours needs to be melted, boss! I can’t think of a single reason with better fitness why you can’t become a world-class Test bowler,” Arun paraphrases Shastri’s words from memory.
Arun puts it in the context of the “incredibly hard work” Kuldeep has put in since late 2021 since he was sidelined due to a serious leg injury that required surgery.
“It seems silly to say this, but I think that injury left him no choice but to get fit. He had to do all the hard rehabilitation work, getting rid of that puppy fat, to continue with his dream of playing cricket. And he’s obviously he’s worked a lot on his bowling – that energy through the crease is a standout feature now. It allows you to pick up the pace without sacrificing turns, loops and drifts,” Arun tells The Indian Express.
It is also the reason why India will now have to face Kuldeep before Axar Patel in any Test they play. Especially, in the context of serving pitches – not range-changers – where Axar, the bowler, is almost nullified, or at least his effectiveness is greatly reduced.
On such tracks, the comparison can be simplistically reduced to a battle between your original balls. Axar’s landing on a length and drift on a good day with a touch of spin doesn’t stand a chance against Kuldeep’s wrist offering with a little more spin that has the potential to beat batsmen in flight, with drop and turn. Aligned with it, are the other variations of it. Axar was one of India’s most valuable batsmen in the home Test series against Australia, but of late, batsman Kuldeep has struggled tenaciously, putting a big price on his wicket.
Energy, not rhythm
Coming back to Arun, the perception floating around at that time was that during his stint, Kuldeep didn’t play as often because he wanted the spinner to play faster. Arun laughs.
“Any bowler can bowl faster; that was never the point. It had to be done without sacrificing turns, loops and drops. And it was always about the energy through the crease. The end result is a visible increase in pace. Not the other way. Don’t go there and shoot the ball. None of us are idiots! It was about having patience and working hard.
“How do you do that? Fitness is certainly a factor in playing Tests with that kind of energy. We always knew Kuldeep can deliver: Who can forget the ball he bowled in the 2015 World Cup to Babar Azam! How to hold that for longer periods? When the release point hand position is precise, the arm speed is faster. All the nuances of the spinner can arise through the wrist position. Now look at it, speed faster arm movement, that movement through the crease, almost perfect hand position at the moment of delivery, and everything is going in the direction it should be going: towards the batter at the other end. With better fitness and its basics (of the bowling action) careful, he is now actively channeling all his energy at the other end, trying to beat the man there,” says Arun.
Back from the edge
However, it was not an easy journey. In IPL 2021, Kuldeep did not feature in a single game for Kolkata Knight Riders and left the bubble after suffering a knee injury, forcing him to undergo surgery. Former spinner and selector Sunil Joshi had spoken to this newspaper about his work with Kuldeep from 2021-22 following his return from a particular surgery.
“I shortened his stride, improved his lead arm, improved his arm speed, got him to rev the ball more… Ravi Shastri asked me, ‘Sunil, what have you done with Kuldeep?’ I told him, ‘Ravi bhai, I haven’t done anything special. If you look at Kuldeep 2.0, his front arm is going towards the target, his bowling arm is towards the target, he runs towards the target. Shorter stride, there is a free follow-through, he has become faster in the air.”
A stint with Delhi Capitals under Ricky Ponting helped. He was presented with regular matches. Rishabh Pant, his IPL captain, gave him more encouragement. And now he has flourished more under the captaincy of Rohit Sharma.
“Tu aisa daalega toh bowling nahi doonga (If you bowl like this, I will eliminate you),” Rohit shouted during a game last year when he felt Kuldeep was sliding towards a flatter trajectory. Rohit can cajole; He can also be a firm hand that guides us. Both these traits have helped Kuldeep. In the ongoing series against England, Rohit has spent a lot of time with Kuldeep in the nets, having long talks about his batting, his bat flow and his trigger moves. Everything is syncing very well now.
He may not be able to play the final Test in Dharamshala due to conditions that may lead India to opt for a high-paced composition, but overall, the future looks bright. As Arun says: “He is not even 30 yet, his best years as a Test spinner are yet to come.”