Road to World Cup 2019: The Kuldeep-Chahal report card

Spin greats Dilip Doshi and Erapalli Prasanna feel chinaman Kuldeep Yadav should fine-tune his skills ahead of the ICC Cricket World Cup.

Kuldeep Yadav (left) and Yuzvendra Chahal celebrate a wicket in India’s tour of England in 2018.

 

Before the limited-overs series against Australia, India’s spin department looked settled with Kuldeep Yadav and Yuzvendra Chahal holding fort. But it’s not the same after the five ODIs.

Even though Kuldeep bagged 10 wickets, he conceded 302 runs and Usman Khawaja looked comfortable against the chinaman.

Kuldeep featured in all the five fixtures. The team management fielded Chahal for only one game [in Mohali], where he conceded 80 runs. With the World Cup just a couple of months away, does it come as a warning for the Indian team?

READ| Team India for World Cup 2019: Five former selectors pick their squads

“Of course, it is a worrisome sign. Kuldeep is too slow in the air and it’s only a question of time when the opponent batsmen find it out,” said former India spinner Dilip Doshi.

“You cannot be that slow in the air, so it is important to work on your bowling technique. He is a good bowler in the making but he is not going to give you consistent results. You can clearly see that he has to be quicker in the air. Now, there seems to be enough time for the batsman,” Doshi said.

The former India spinner also believes that using Kedar Jadhav for long spells is not a good sign. “He can bowl a few odd overs, but bowling seven to eight overs is not a healthy sign. They need to strike a balance. Choosing eight batsmen and picking up batters who can bowl would not help them in the World Cup,” he said.

‘Jadeja, the best’

“Our best bowler is Ravindra Jadeja. You can expect certain consistency from him. Kuldeep and Chahal are there, but your best bet is Jadeja. English conditions may get dry in summers, it is very difficult to predict the weather,” Doshi, who stayed in the UK for a long time, stated.

Spin great Erapalli Prasanna feels Kuldeep needs to get more turn to keep the batsmen under pressure. “His action is too visible and the batsmen can easily read it. So it is important for him to get more turns and that’s the only way out,” Prasanna said.

“Chahal has to flight the ball to be effective in the World Cup. India will depend a lot on the two, so it is time they rectify these things,” Prasanna pointed out.

While the two yesteryear spinners talk about Kuldeep and Chahal improving their technique, former India cricketer Sairaj Bahutule, feels there is no need to press the panic button after one disappointing series. “They (Kuldeep and Chahal) are ready. You can’t judge them by just one series. Out of the last 10 series, they have fared well in seven or eight, that shows their effectiveness. Just after one series, you can’t raise doubts,” Bahutule said.