The India left-arm spinner Kuldeep Yadav looked set to play the fourth Test against Australia in Brisbane last month after both spinners Ravichandran Ashwin and Ravindra Jadeja, along with pacer Jasprit Bumrah were ruled out due to injuries. But instead of picking Kuldeep, the Ajinkya Rahane-led Indian team decided to go with the inexperienced bowling line-up of pacers Mohammed Siraj, Navdeep Saini, Shardul Thakur, and debutants T Natarajan and Washington Sundar.
The decision proved to be a correct one with the Indian bowling line-up coming good against an insipid Australian batting line-up. India won the Test and clinched the Test series 2-1.
But now Virat Kohli will return as captain when India face off against England in the four-match Test series, and with several key bowlers returning to the team including Ashwin, Bumrah, and speedster Ishant Sharma who had missed the Australia tour, it seems it might be difficult for Kuldeep to break into the team once again.
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Speaking to news agency PTI, former India fast bowler Irfan Pathan said that Kuldeep should be given opportunities to play Test cricket as he is a 'unique bowler'.
{{/usCountry}}Speaking to news agency PTI, former India fast bowler Irfan Pathan said that Kuldeep should be given opportunities to play Test cricket as he is a 'unique bowler'.
{{/usCountry}}"It is very important from the team management point of view, how they keep the mindset of a player, who is not playing. I am sure they must be doing the right job, and that's why the guys when we saw some of the youngsters, came and played really well," Pathan said.
"I am sure they must be supporting and backing Kuldeep Yadav because he has got immense talent. You don't find left-arm wrist spinners on every-day-basis.
"He is a unique bowler. The guy is about 25-26 and this is where he is going to get maturity. Whenever he gets the opportunity, first Test, second Test, whenever he will be raring to go and I am pretty sure that he will do well," he added.
Further making a case for Yadav to play against England, Pathan cited history.
"When it comes to England, look at the history, if you are a leg-spinner, you always have a chance of performing well, I just hope that whenever he plays, he does really well and he does," Pathan further said.
Yadav has so far played six Tests and picked 24 wickets. He played his last Test against Australia in Sydney in January 2019.
Speaking on what bowling combination India should play in the first Test which begins from Friday, Pathan said: "It depends on the wickets but there is a high chance in Chennai they play three spinners because we see how Chennai pitch can really help the spinners with that extra bounce as well and the soil, which is very conducive for spin bowling."
"India is such a good side that even if they have to play three fast bowlers, they will be ready to play, in any kind of pitch," he added.
"But conditions which are helping, with dry pitches, you will definitely see three spinners playing," he further said.
Pathan further explained a scenario in which all three spinners - Ashwin, Sundar, and Kuldeep - could play a Test together in India.
"There could a chance because if you play Washington Sundar, you are not playing Washington Sundar just for pure ability for his bowling, you are playing him as an all-rounder. He bats really well and he can really do well as a spinner in India specially when the conditions are really helping the spinners and we have always seen wrist-spinners are important.
"But on Indian pitches finger spinners can be very very useful, specially guys who can bowl fast-spin like (Ravindra) Jadeja. He (Sundar) can play a similar role even (though) he is an off-spinner, there could be a chance where you could see Ashwin, Washington Sundar and Kuldeep Yadav, these three guys playing," Pathan signed off.
(With PTI inputs)