IPL 2018: Its always special to play for KKR, says Kuldeep Yadav

Kuldeep Yadav is now an important and integral part of the Indian limited-overs squad. He and Chahal have replaced the incumbent Ravichandran Ashwin and Ravindra Jadeja in the team and made the spot their own. They have also got the backing of skipper Virat Kohli and were expected to earn big bucks in the IPL auction.

There is a great demand for leg spinners in IPL given that the batsmen are finding it tough to tonk them away. However, these two bowlers’ bids didn’t go as high up as expected. All the other franchises were well aware that their previous teams will definitely use the RTM cards for them.

KKR retain Kuldeep Yadav using RTM card

The 23-year-old Kuldeep Yadav has a very decent IPL record. He has picked up 18 wickets in 15 matches so far in the IPL and has grown in stature bowling in tight situations. Although his economy rate (8.3) is on the higher side, he has this knack of picking some big wickets at crucial moments in the game. The Kolkata Knight Riders had no hesitation to use their RTM card right away for Kuldeep.

Although the other franchises tried to raise his stakes up, they didn’t take up as high as expected. The Royal Challengers Bangalore successfully had him at Rs 5.80 crores. But their happiness didn’t last long as the KKR management showed the RTM card. The Kolkata Knight Riders have managed to keep the core of their team from last year. Kuldeep turned out to be yet another successful addition to their squad.

Kuldeep Yadav too was happy to join the KKR squad yet again. He took to Twitter to express his happiness. He revealed he couldn’t wait to be back in Kolkata, the city of joy. His tweet read,” Feels good to be with the @KKRiders family again. It’s always special to play for KKR. Can’t wait to be back in the City of Joy soon! #IPL11.”

Here is what he tweeted:

Feels good to be with the @KKRiders family again. It's always special to play for KKR. Can't wait to be back in the City of Joy soon! #IPL11

— Kuldeep yadav (@imkuldeep18) January 27, 2018