Kuldeep is rare talent, says ex-England spinner Tufnell
England may have cracked the Kuldeep Yadav code, but former left-arm spinner Phil Tufnell says India will be better off playing him in the Test series as well, having done the good thing by picking the “rare” talent in the five-day squad.
Tufnell was full of praise for Yadav, marking him as a rarity. “You don’t come across too many left-arm wrist spinners. There are a few leg spinners around across all formats. Kuldeep is a rare bowler.
“When you come across his type of bowling, you need to really work it out because it is something you haven’t seen before. It is a special thing, and a rarity really,” said Tufnell.
When asked if Yadav should be in the playing eleven for the first Test starting in Birmingham on August 1, he replied, “I would definitely play him.”
“It’s a good thing India haven’t sent Kuldeep home. Just look at the weather we have had. I think it is set to be similarly fair for the next month or so. So you never know India might even play three spinners depending on pitches and their combinations.
“India have three world class spinners in their Test squad, but I would definitely think of Kuldeep. I would want him hanging close around the English batsmen,” he added.
With a 2-1 win in the ODI series, England underlined their status not only as the world’s number one ranked ODI side but also the tag of favourites going into the 2019 ODI World Cup. “This series was a bit about bragging rights. England can raise their neck a bit. You could have said the same about India as well. Beating England here would have given them a bit of up-man-ship if they meet next year.
“And I think they will, because these two sides are poised to make it far in the World Cup. They would meet in a semi-final or final for sure. They are two very good sides, batting deep and possessing clever wickettaking bowlers.
“So I can see these two teams progressing far in the World Cup. If they meet in the final, it will be a cracker jack. It is a game we would all want to see,” he said.
Tufnell has said that the hosts won the ODI series because their spinners Adil Rashid and Moeen Ali outperformed Indian spinners.
Kuldeep Yadav took 6-25 in the first ODI at Nottingham, but then returned 3-68 and 0-55 in the next two matches at Lord’s and Leeds. Yuzvendra Chahal managed only 2-135 across the three games.
In comparison, Adil Rashid and Moeen Ali shared eight wickets between them to bowl England to victory.
“Indian batsmen are very adept at playing spin bowling and have done so all their lives. [But] Rashid and Ali have a very good partnership going at the moment. They are very experienced in one-day cricket and were top of their game with some really dry weather here,” Tufnell said.