Australia vs India 2018-19: Kuldeep Yadav Comes Into World Cup Mix Big Time, Reckons Ravi Shastri

The head coach of the Indian National Cricket team, Ravi Shastri feels that young spinner Kuldeep Yadav is an automatic choice for the upcoming 2019 ICC Cricket World Cup in England and Wales.

Meanwhile, Kuldeep impressed in the only match he played in the Border-Gavaskar Test series. In the fourth Test at Sydney, Kuldeep Yadav returned with a five-wicket haul to skittle Australia for 300 in his very first game Down Under. He earned accolades from one and sundry as the Aussies batsmen danced to his tunes. Although the Test culminated in a draw, India defeated Australia 2-1 to register their first-ever series win in the Australian soil.

However, in limited overs cricket, Yadav becomes even more lethal when batsmen are looking to score runs. As a result, Ravi Shastri is keen to get the X-factor in Kuldeep Yadav in the mega cricketing event.

“Kuldeep comes into the mix big time now (in the World Cup),” Shastri told ‘India Today’ TV channel.

“He might be in every Indian XI that plays (in the World Cup) because he has the advantage of a wrist spinner. We might need to choose between the other two finger spinners because wrist spinner now is the priority,” he added.

Kuldeep Yadav has been one of the significant contributors for India in limited-overs cricket for the past one year. He along with leg-spinner Yuzvendra Chahal has been detrimental to India’s success in the white ball cricket. The duo will once again be in action in the upcoming three-match one-day international series against Australia.

The series will commence from January 12 (Saturday) at the Sydney Cricket Ground followed by games on January 15 and 18.