Kuldeep Yadav's Inclusion Urged to Revitalize India's Bowling Attack After Test Setback

Friday - 27/06/2025 06:00

Following India's underwhelming bowling performance in the first Test, former cricket stars Michael Clarke and Nick Knight have urged the inclusion of Kuldeep Yadav. Clarke criticized India's selection strategy, emphasizing the need to prioritize wicket-taking over bolstering batting depth.

NEW DELHI: Following India's underwhelming bowling performance in the first Test at Headingley, former Australian captain Michael Clarke and ex-England cricketer Nick Knight have urged the team management to include spinner Kuldeep Yadav in the bowling attack.

Kuldeep Yadav's potential game-changing role.

Apart from Jasprit Bumrah, who performed well, the other Indian bowlers struggled on a favorable surface that offered minimal assistance. The pace unit appeared ineffective, with Mohammed Siraj delivering a below-par performance and Prasidh Krishna failing to establish the correct length. Shardul Thakur was unable to make his usual impact, and while Ravindra Jadeja managed to extract some turn, he lacked sufficient support from the other end.

"Bowling-wise, I do not want to be hard on any individual, but I think they've got to play Kuldeep Yadav. I think it is an absolute no-brainer. I think he's a wicket-taker and would have offered a lot more than what he saw the attack do in this Test," Clarke stated on the Beyond23 Podcast.

Clarke also criticized India's selection strategy, stating, "India have done this for a while. They care so much about extra batting or stacking the batting deep, and they are willing to risk picking the number one spinner to do that. I think to win in England, you've got to look to pick 20 wickets."

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Knight echoed similar sentiments, especially given the dry English summer. "I would be looking for every opportunity to play Kuldeep Yadav. England will find it hard against Kuldeep. If Kuldeep is on top of his game, that could be a defining moment in the series, or moments, because England likes to be aggressive. When you want to be aggressive, you have to be certain about which way the ball is turning. If there is a little bit of assistance from the pitch, Kuldeep will be able to bowl all his varieties," he said.

The second Test between India and England is scheduled to commence on July 2nd at Edgbaston in Birmingham.