INDIA TOUR OF SOUTH AFRICA, 2018

Another step up in Kuldeep's rapid rise

by Kaushik Rangarajan • Last updated on

Kuldeep Yadav and Yuzvendra Chahal were not short of admirers on a muggy Thursday night in Durban. Virat Kohli called the spin twins the 'difference makers'. There was a fan in the opposite camp too with Faf du Plessis begrudgingly stating that South Africa would have a little feedback session about the two in order to handle them better in subsequent games.

Ever since the start of the Sri Lanka series, India have been clear in their ideological shift to turn towards wrist spin. But that show of faith could easily have been misguided given that they were playing on conventionally helpful surfaces in the subcontinent. Given that the World Cup in 2019 is to be played in England, any waves made by the two, in tandem, had to always be taken with a mental caveat - Could they play together on surfaces less suited to spin? There are times when even hopeless romantics of wrist spin like Kohli would have to take pragmatic calls.

Fortunately for the Indian captain, the Durban ODI served evidence that he could be rewarded for listening to his gut. On an atypical South African wicket, but in no way spin conducive, Kuldeep embraced the challenge and looked every inch a central piece of India's bowling arsenal. The left-armer highlighted India's bowling performance with three for 34 in his 10 overs, while his spin partner Chahal took two for 45. The pair, bowling at varied stages - from as early as the 11th over to as late as the 44th - registered combined figures of 20-0-79-5 and effectively bowled India to a one-nil series lead.

For a spinner playing his first game on South African soil, and that a good month after his last competitive game, it would have been easy to play on the side of caution and work his way into the series. In the 41st over of the innings, Kuldeep floated a delivery to Chris Morris, who along with du Plessis, had helped South Africa recover from a wobbly 134 for 5. Morris stayed leg-side of the ball and lofted it over extra cover for six. A lesser bowler would have fired the next one in and conceded a single or run the risk of being cut/pulled for four. Two balls later, however, Kuldeep tossed it up again. Morris went for the sweep on the full, missed and was cleaned up, ending a crucial 74-run stand.

"The six didn't scare me," Kuldeep said in a stunning show of post-match candour. "The wind carried the ball over the last time. I wanted him to play exactly that shot (the one that went for six) because the leg-side boundary was shorter. I bowled a topspinner. I was looking for a top edge if he went for the shorter boundary at midwicket. It was a good ball, but he played a good shot.

"There was a partnership going on. Du Plessis and Morris were playing well. If Morris had batted on for a few more overs, they could have reached 290 or even 300. At that time we needed a wicket. I took the chance. I always think if I try to bowl to contain I will concede more runs," he added.

Kuldeep came on to bowl with South Africa striking at nearly six runs to the over at 83 for 2 after 15 overs. He admitted to being nervous at the end of the game but gave no indication of it with his bowling. He bowled five deliveries at South Africa's Aiden Markram, four of which painted the South African's spin-reading skills in very poor light. It was a slow wicket in the afternoon but it was still Durban and not Delhi.

"It doesn't matter where you are playing. Since childhood I have bowled on cement wickets," Kuldeep said. "In my head the only thing is taking wickets for the team and this is Chahal's plan as well when we are bowling as a pair. The more wickets we take, the more pressure on the opposition team and the lesser runs they will score. So in my head, that's the thing."

For a young man still in the nascent stages of his international career, Kuldeep carries himself with a swagger that almost seems imbibed from his captain, yet not unnatural on him. While du Plessis suggested that his batsmen would need a game or two to pick up on the nuances of the wrist spinner, Kuldeep simply put his 3 for 34 down to bowling "quality spells" as opposed to tricks of the hand. And they weren't merely tricks, they were elaborate setups. Duminy played back to a googly and lost his stumps after a couple of floaters. David Miller, on the other hand, was drawn into driving a tossed-up delivery outside the off-stump.

"I don't bowl with an awkward action. I have simple variations and a simple action, like a normal leg spinner," Kuldeep said in an almost matter-of-fact way. "The only difference is that if you are bowling quality spells then any batsman will find it difficult. If your ball is dipping or drifting and turning, so anybody could be batting, but he will find it tough."

There is a clear bond between the young spinner and his captain. Kohli can, at times, be bluntly critical of bad performance with his body language. But both Kuldeep (and also Chahal), he is more than willing to offer a pat on the back for every boundary conceded. Rather than be disdainful, he glows when he sees something that matches his idea of cricket - attacking. Perhaps there is something self-congratulatory in that, but the truth is probably that he genuinely wants his audience to share his glee in the expression of the aesthetic ideal of wrist spin. And it is in this environment that Kuldeep has thrived most, than in the conditions.

Kohli continues to insist that Chahal and Kuldeep with their variety in a similar art form can play together at the World Cup if the terms are right. Performances of this class will certainly do wonders for their bargaining power.

© Cricbuzz

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