Very Happy That After A Long Time Yuzvendra Chahal And I Got To Play Together - Kuldeep Yadav

On Sunday, in the first ODI against Sri Lanka, wrist-spinners Kuldeep Yadav and Yuzvendra Chahal were reunited for the first time since the 2019 World Cup. After a beating they got from England in the group stage game, the pair was separated, and neither had a fixed place in the eleven since then,

Now, after an impressive show by both in Colombo, signs of their return to form looks promising.

After India’s thumping 7-wicket win, Kuldeep Yadav said he was “very happy” to bowl once again in tandem alongside Chahal. He asserted both the leggies revel in each other’s presence and share the inputs about the game. He also talked about his bowling as he returned with figures of 2/48.

“Very happy that after a long time Chahal and I got to play together for the team. We are comfortable with each other and we back each other. We both share inputs on the field whenever it is required, the bonding is nice between us both. We performed well together, we played after a long time and it orders well for the side,” Kuldeep Yadav said.

“I was trying to vary my pace as the wicket was dry in the first innings. The wicket offered some assistance for the spinners, I was varying my pace depending on the batsmen. Very happy with the way team performed in this match,” he added.

Rahul Dravid backed me a lot and motivated me: Kuldeep Yadav

Kuldeep Yadav also revealed Rahul Dravid’s role in his success in the first ODI. He was coming off a forgettable ODI series against England, and then a gameless IPL 2021. Dravid, the tour’s coach, gave the much-needed motivation to the chinaman before the game to calm his nervousness.

“Pressure… nervousness is always there when you play, and I was playing after a long time. Rahul [Dravid] sir backed me a lot and motivated me. We spoke a lot, and he told me that I should just enjoy bowling, focus on the processes that we have worked on in the last 15 days, and don’t be tense about the result. I’m very happy that my performance was good. You’re definitely nervous if you play cricket after so long, and you want to perform well,” the 26-year-old stated.