"Rishabh Pant actually backed him to give him confidence" - Abhinav Mukund credits Delhi Capitals skipper for Kuldeep Yadav's white-ball resurgence
Former Indian batter Abhinav Mukund credited Delhi Capitals (DC) skipper Rishabh Pant for the turnaround in Kuldeep Yadav's bowling in white-ball cricket.
The 28-year-old starred for India in the ODI and T20I series against the West Indies, picking up 13 wickets in total at an incredible economy rate of under four and six in the ODIs and T20Is, respectively. Following his rise between 2017 and 2019, Kuldeep endured a massive dip in form since the 2019 World Cup until 2021.
He also played sparingly for the Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) in 2019 and 2020 before an injury forced him to miss the 2021 season. Kuldeep was released by the franchise and moved to the Delhi Capitals in 2022.
His first season with DC saw the left-arm chinaman bowler return to his best under the captaincy of Rishabh Pant, picking up 21 wickets in 14 games.
Speaking to Jio Cinema following the West Indies tour, Mukund praised Pant for backing Kuldeep to the hilt and restoring his confidence.
"And the confidence as well, one man that we seldom mention in the last 6 months. It’s Rishabh Pant, he was the guy who backed him to the T in the IPL in terms of giving him the comeback. He (Kuldeep) was not sought after in terms of the IPL at that point. Rishabh Pant actually backed him and gave him that run to give him confidence. Kuldeep owes a lot to Rishabh in terms of getting him back on track," said Mukund.
Kuldeep has bagged an impressive 22 wickets in 11 ODIs so far this year, in addition to his eight T20I scalps.
Despite his heroics, Team India suffered defeat in the five-match T20I series by a 3-2 scoreline after winning the Test and ODI series.
"He has changed his run-up, he was more angular when he started out" - Abhinav Mukund on Kuldeep Yadav
Abhinav Mukund further emphasized a few technical changes made by Kuldeep Yadav to his bowling, especially the change in his run-up and delivery stride. The former batter felt that the change is enabling the spinner to bowl the flatter delivery consistently.
"He has worked on his bowling a lot. He has changed his run up, he was more angular when he started out. He has become a lot straighter. That means he is getting into the stride much faster than he was which is enabling him to bowl that flatter trajectory," said Mukund.
Mukund added that with his recent performances, Kuldeep Yadav may have jumped ahead of Yuzvendra Chahal in the pecking order.
"He is looking like a dream bowler right now, he is looking very, very good. I won't be surprised if India pick Kuldeep and Jadeja ahead of Chahal in the World Cup. I think Kuldeep has leapfrogged Chahal at this point," added Mukund.
Kuldeep's sensational form in the 50-over format may have made him the first-choice spinner ahead of Chahal this year.
The spin duo, popularly known as 'Kulcha' have played only one ODI game together this year — against New Zealand in Indore.