Kuldeep Yadav Benched for Entire England Series: Bowling Coach Explains Decision. Kuldeep Yadav remained on the sidelines throughout all five Tests of the India vs England series, sparking widespread debate among fans and experts alike.
India’s bowling coach Morne Morkel has now addressed the decision to leave out the wrist-spinner, who was the only specialist spinner in the squad. Instead of including Kuldeep Yadav India opted for spin-bowling all-rounders Washington Sundar and Ravindra Jadeja to handle spin duties.
Many former cricketers and analysts had backed Kuldeep’s inclusion, believing his left-arm wrist spin could have posed serious challenges to England’s middle order.
His omission became especially contentious after England’s Joe Root (105) and Harry Brook (111) stitched together a commanding 195-run partnership in the second innings of the Oval Test. Their centuries on day four played a crucial role in England’s strong push for victory, reigniting the debate around Kuldeep Yadav absence.
“We Prioritized Batting Depth Over Kuldeep Yadav’s Inclusion” – Morne Morkel Explains Team India’s Strategy
Speaking at the post-day-four press conference, India’s bowling coach Morne Morkel opened up about the decision to leave out Kuldeep Yadav throughout the Test series. Morkel revealed that the team management believed including an extra batter was vital, especially given the early match conditions and pitch behavior.
“To be honest, that’s been a point of discussion before every Test,” Morkel told India Today. “Considering the nature of the wickets and overhead conditions early in the games, we felt it was important to go in with the extra batter.”
He further explained that in the recent matches, India’s fourth seamer barely bowled many overs, and with Washington Sundar and Ravindra Jadeja both capable of bowling extended spells, the team leaned toward bolstering the batting lineup.
“In the last couple of games, our fourth seamer didn’t get many overs. With Washi and Jadeja able to bowl long spells, we chose to strengthen the batting. That said, we’ll certainly reflect on these decisions at the end of the tour to see what could’ve been done differently,” Morkel added.
So far in the series, Washington Sundar has picked up seven wickets in four matches at an average of 38.57, while also contributing 284 runs in eight innings, including a century and a half-century. Ravindra Jadeja, on the other hand, has taken seven wickets in five Tests and delivered strongly with the bat—amassing 516 runs in 10 innings, which includes one century and five fifties.
In the current fifth Test, both all-rounders proved their worth again by scoring half-centuries in the second innings, helping India set a mammoth 374-run target for England.
As the match heads toward a thrilling conclusion at The Oval, England ended Day 4 at 339/6, needing just 35 more runs to win. However, they’re short on wickets with only four in hand, one of them being an injured Chris Woakes, making for a tense final day ahead.