"I'm not thinking about the 2023 World Cup" - Kuldeep Yadav focused on one series at a time
India's left-arm wrist spinner Kuldeep Yadav stated that he wants to live in the present and doesn't want to think about next year's ODI World Cup on home soil. The 27-year-old reckons that his job is to give his best every time he plays and wants to focus on that.
Kuldeep delivered a sensational bowling performance as India convincingly beat South Africa in the third and final ODI in Delhi on Tuesday, October 11. The leggie ended up with figures of 4.1-1-18-4 as the tourists managed only 99 runs on the board after choosing to bat first.
Speaking at a press conference after the victory, Kuldeep underlined that India have plenty of games to play before the ODI World Cup next year and he wants to take it one series at a time. He said:
"I'm not thinking about the 2023 World Cup and I've become practical about things. I tend to focus on the series I'm currently playing and there is time for the World Cup.
"Definitely, I have more experience now, having played plenty of matches for India and I have an idea on how to bowl in the longer format. There are plenty of series left, so the biggest aim is to perform well in every one of them. That's my task."
For his terrific 4-wicket haul, @imkuldeep18 bags the Player of the Match award in the #INDvSA decider 👏👏
#TeamIndia https://t.co/L8Oa6EI0Mf
While the premier spinner struggled slightly in India's three-match ODI series in Zimbabwe, taking just three scalps, he finished as the highest wicket-taker for India A against New Zealand A.
The Kanpur-born bowler took seven wickets in three unofficial ODIs at an average of 14.57. He was also part of India's 2019 ODI World Cup squad, but snared only six wickets at an average of 56.17.
"I'll try to go for it next time" - Kuldeep Yadav on narrowly missing out on a hat-trick against South Africa
Kuldeep, who has a couple of ODI hat tricks to his name, admitted that fine margins led to him missing another one in the third game against the Proteas. But he wasn't bothered much by it, stating:
"I was confident about taking a hattrick, but I felt the rhythm broke and maybe I should've stopped before bowling the ball. But it happens as a hat-trick doesn't come so easily.
"I took a hat-trick against New Zealand A. If you do something regularly, your confidence is always up and if you get the opportunity to do it again, you get the confidence of achieving it again. It's okay if it didn't happen again. I'll try to go for it next time."
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bit.ly/INDvSA-3RDODIVice-captain @ShreyasIyer15 finishes off in style! 💥
An all-around performance from #TeamIndia to win the final #INDvSA ODI and clinch the series 2⃣-1⃣. 👏👏
Scorecard ▶️ bit.ly/INDvSA-3RDODI https://t.co/7PwScwECod
The wrist-spinner got rid of Bjorn Fortuin and Anrich Nortje on consecutive deliveries in the 26th over. However, Lungi Ngidi denied the Indian bowler a hat-trick.
The Men in Blue chased the target in 19.1 overs to clinch the three-match series by a 2-1 margin.
Also Read: "I'm focused more on my process" - Kuldeep Yadav on not making it to India's T20 World Cup squad