'Ravi Shastri asked what have you done with him’ - Sunil Joshi reflects on Kuldeep Yadav's transformation journey after rough patch
"I was the one who got his delivery stride shorter, front arm better, arm speed better, got him to rip more revolutions on the ball," Sunil Joshi said.
Star Indian spinner Kuldeep Yadav has made quite a comeback into the Indian team and has been at the top of his game in 2023 whenever he has been provided with the chance. With his performances, he has become one of the frontrunners to make it into the Indian squad for the upcoming ODI World Cup.
However, the road has not always been easy for the 28-year-old. Yadav’s career started going south back in 2019 when he fell out of favour for India and even his Indian Premier League (IPL) franchise KKR. However, the spinner found his way back to form after settling in with Delhi Capitals in the IPL 2022.
Apart from the coaching he received at Delhi Capitals, it was former India selector Sunil Joshi who helped him get his mojo back and find his place once again in the squad. Coming forward to reflect on the same, Sunil Joshi opined that no one was willing to help the spinner through that tough phase of his career.
"I was part of the selection committee when Kuldeep Yadav got dropped. Who came to the rescue? None of the coaching staff, I was the one who got his delivery stride shorter, front arm better, arm speed better, got him to rip more revolutions on the ball," Sunil Joshi told The Indian Express.
Furthermore, he also talked about what everyone thought after the left-arm spinner returned to his peak and started performing consistently. Joshi revealed that the former India head coach Ravi Shastri came to him and asked what he had done differently with the 28-year-old.
"Suddenly, everybody is talking about Kuldeep Yadav. Ravi Shastri asked what have you done with Kuldeep? I said, ‘Ravi bhai I have not done anything special. These are the simple things that a bowling coach should be doing. If you look at Kuldeep 2.0, his front arm is nice toward the target, his bowling arm is towards the target, and he is running towards the target. Shorter stride, there is a free follow-through, and he has got quicker through the air. You look at the way he is bowling now," Joshi added.
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