Australia vs India, 2018-19: 3 reasons to play Kuldeep Yadav in the Adelaide Test
If there is one Indian bowler who has looked extremely consistent for India over the last two seasons, it has to be Kuldeep Yadav. Having made his international debut in the series decider against Australia in a Test match at Dharamsala in March 2017, there have been very few days Kuldeep has not made headlines with his bowling performances.
Kuldeep's bowling turned heads on the very first day of the match, getting the wicket of David Warner followed by a fantastic chinaman and a wrong-un to clean bowl Peter Handscomb and Glenn Maxwell respectively. India won the match, and the performance also led to his selection for the limited-overs squads for the West Indies tour.
While Kuldeep instantly grabbed the opportunity to seal a place in the ODI and T20 side, the main reason he did not get selected for too many Test matches was the strong performances of Ravichandran Ashwin and Ravindra Jadeja on subcontinent wickets. Despite that, he followed a four-wicket haul on his debut with another one in just his second Test at Pallakele to finish with nine wickets in two Tests.
Though he was ignored for the Test leg during the South African tour, strong performances in the limited over matches in South Africa and then in England led to his selection for the first three Tests during the England tour. Getting to bowl only nine overs in the second Test at Lord's, he was sent back to India to play a few first-class matches and get some rhythm going in red ball cricket.
He was picked again for India's home series against West Indies to play alongside Ashwin and Jadeja. He impressed one and all, finishing second highest wicket-taker with ten wickets in the two-Test series. He also got a five-wicket haul in the second innings during the first Test at Rajkot to become only the second Indian bowler with a five-wicket haul in all formats.
With almost 80 international wickets this year, Kuldeep was selected for the T20I as well as Test squad for the tour of Australia. He continued his stunning limited overs form to finish as one of the leading wicket-takers, along with a tight economy during the T20 series. Once again, he earned the praise of his captain Virat Kohli and looks certain to figure in the Test series at some point.
However, there are a few reasons why Kuldeep Yadav should be included in the first Test match at Adelaide if India are looking to win the series. Let us have a look at three major reasons why Kuldeep should be selected at Adelaide.