IND vs ZIM 2022: "His chances look dim" - Reetinder Sodhi on Kuldeep Yadav making it to India's squad for T20 World Cup 2022
Former India cricketer Reetinder Singh Sodhi believes that Kuldeep Yadav wasn't able to make the most of his chances in the recently concluded three-match ODI series in Zimbabwe.
Speaking on India News Sports, he stated that the wrist spinner needed to come up with spectacular performances, which he wasn't able to do. He believes that the left-armer needs to be more consistent in order to cement his place in the team.
The 41-year-old also reckoned that Kuldeep Yadav might not be able to find a place in the Men in Blue squad for the upcoming T20 World Cup 2022. Sodhi stated:
"Kuldeep Yadav needed to perform exceptionally well on this tour to win the hearts of the selectors. He did bowl well in this match, but he has to be more consistent. He will be a little disappointed as he could have done better.
"It remains to be seen if he gets a call-up for the T20 World Cup, but at the moment, his chances look a bit dim."
Kuldeep Yadav bagged only three wickets from as many matches against Zimbabwe, however, had a fantastic economy rate of 4.39. Axar Patel proved to be more successful, finishing with six wickets.
"They struggled when they were under pressure" - Rajkumar Sharma on the performances of Indian pacers in 3rd ODI against Zimbabwe
Speaking in the video, Virat Kohli's childhood coach Rajkumar Sharma highlighted that the Indian pacers failed to hit the right lengths in the encounter when put under the pump.
He also spoke about how the bowlers weren't able to get the yorker right and also didn't try a lot of variations. Sharma stated:
"Indian pacers didn't bowl yorkers during the death overs. Shardul Thakur did bowl a few slower deliveries towards the end, otherwise even that variation seemed to be missing. We could see the inexperience of the three seamers.
"Zimbabwe don't have a very strong batting lineup, but despite that they struggled when they were under pressure."
Saba Karim also pointed out that the Indian fast bowlers struggled during the death overs. The former cricketer suggested they weren't able to execute their plans well when Sikandar Raza was playing attacking cricket towards the backend of Zimbabwe's innings.
He stated:
"There was no need to bowl yorkers in the first two games as the bowlers were getting wickets easily due to the favourable conditions. This was the first time that the Indian pacers were under pressure in this series. They weren't able to hit the right lengths during that time."
Sikandar Raza masterclass ends on 115 (95) with 9 fours and 3 sixes. Marvelous fighting spirit by Raza and Zimbabwe, an innings to remember for long.
Well done, Raza! https://t.co/W5IH378OIV
The Men in Blue secured a thrilling 13-run victory in the third ODI. The visitors completed a stunning 3-0 series win over Zimbabwe in the ODI rubber.