Sachin Tendulkar asked me to aim for 500 Test wickets: Kuldeep Yadav

Young Indian chinaman bowler Kuldeep Yadav has become a household name in Indian cricket in the recent times. The 22-year old was an instant hit in the Kolkata Knight Riders outfit in the previous edition of the tournament. With a lot of variations in his armory, Kuldeep can be a very wily customer to deal with for the opposition batsmen. He had recently made his Test debut for India in the Test series against Australia earlier this season.

Recently, the youngster spoke at length about having a conversation with one of his idols of the game. As per the quotes in the Telegraph, Kuldeep Yadav reflected back at the small telephonic conversation he had with Sachin Tendulkar after having made his Test debut. Yadav was superlative in his debut against Australia and had bagged 4/68 in the first innings of the game.

Interestingly, Sachin called up the stand-in captain for that match – Ajinkya Rahane – and asked him to hand over the phone to Kuldeep. Kuldeep remarked that Sachin was very happy with the start that he had got in Test cricket. He added that Sachin loved the variations Kuldeep had come up with in the game.

“Sir was very happy… Unko bahut khushi hui with my Test debut and he commented that my variations had been coming out fine,” Kuldeep Yadav quoted.

Speaking further, the youngster noted that Sachin wants him to keep his focus intact and aim for 500 Test wickets. He also introduced him to the owner of the Mumbai Indians camp Nita Ambani. Not many people know that Kuldeep Yadav was first signed by the Mumbai Indians 5 years ago. He did not a get a game for the MI camp but had impressed Sachin in the practice sessions.

Tendulkar also adviced Kuldeep to keep all the distractions aside and solely focus on his game at the moment. He wants Kuldeep to keep working on his left shoulder – the bowling arm. Focus is the key to success, was the key mantra from Sachin to the Chinaman.

“Most of all, Sir asked me to aim for 500 Test wickets. Unhone kaha ‘tumhe 500 wickets lena hai Test cricket mein’. Coming from Sir, it was huge. Bahut hi badi baat thi mere liye,” said Yadav.

“Sir again congratulated me for my Test debut and introduced me to Nita Ambani, saying I’d started off in the IPL with the Mumbai Indians. Nita Ma’am too expressed her happiness and said something on the lines of me having been a Mumbai Indians boy. Sir asked me to keep working hard and to keep strengthening my left shoulder. ‘Focus rakhna, sab kuch dur rakhna‘ was his straightforward advice,” quoted the chinaman.

Lastly, the youngster is hopeful that he will live up to the expectations of the batting maestro. Also, he wishes to share the same great bond with Sachin Tendulkar in the years to come. Kuldeep is currently playing for the Kolkata Knight Riders in the Indian Premier League 2017. He has played a handful of matches and has performed decently enough thus far.

“I was 17 when I joined the Mumbai Indians, today I’m 22 and have become a Test cricketer. However, Sir continues to be so affectionate. Unka mere saath attachment hai and I pray that nothing changes,” Kuldeep Yadav concluded.