Spin Has Been A Little Bit Of A Worry For India, Especially After Yuzvendra Chahal And Kuldeep Yadav Stopped Playing Together, Says Ajit Agarkar

Ahead of India’s limited-overs series against Sri Lanka, former India pacer Ajit Agarkar has said that spin bowling has become a worrisome topic for India, especially in limited-overs cricket, given Kuldeep Yadav’s loss of confidence and the form of Yuzvendra Chahal.

Popularly dubbed ‘Kul-Cha’, Kuldeep Yadav and Yuzvendra Chahal were drafted into the India white-ball team after disappointing performances of Ravichandran Ashwin and Ravindra Jadeja over a period of time culminating in the ICC 2017 Champions Trophy, where India lost in final to Pakistan.

The duo ruled the roost in the white-ball game until the ICC World Cup 2019, which was the last time the two played an ODI together. Since then, Kuldeep lost his confidence and place in the side, while Chahal has been still preferred by the team management, but has competition from the likes of Rahul Chahar and Varun Chakravarthy.

Both Kuldeep Yadav And Yuzvendra Chahal Know There Are Guys Behind Them: Ajit Agarkar

Ajit Agarkar feels spinner Kuldeep Yadav needs to regain form and get his confidence back if he wants to claim a spot in the T20 World Cup squad. Kuldeep last played for India in a T20I match in January 2020.

“Sometimes I feel that it was a little bit unfair on him (Kuldeep) to miss out on series. But he needs to get his confidence back and start bowling well. Both him and Chahal know there are guys behind them and if you have a competition, the team will do well,” said Agarkar in a virtual press conference.

Sri Lanka and India will lock horns in three ODIs and as many T20Is from July 18 after the series was rescheduled last week. The three ODIs will be played on July 18, 20, and 23. The three T20Is will go ahead on July 25, 27, and 29. R Premadasa Stadium in Colombo hosting all six matches.

“Spin has been a little bit of a worry for India, especially after Chahal and Kuldeep stopped playing together but there are players like Rahul Chahar, Varun Chakraborty and if those guys can do well, it will give more options to Virat Kohli. T20 World Cup is not too far away so it is a good opportunity for the guys to put pressure on players who are already in the team to make their case. These performances won’t get unnoticed,” he added.

Both Kuldeep and Chahal will have a chance to prove their form and worth in the upcoming series against Sri Lanka, which is India’s last before the T20 World Cup in UAE. They will also have the second half of the IPL 2021, also to be played in UAE before the T20 World Cup, to impress the selectors.

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