Kuldeep Yadav breathed a sigh of relief when he managed to dismiss David Warner, a crucial wicket, during India’s 2023 World Cup opener against Australia on Sunday (October 8). In the 17th over, Kuldeep delivered a quicker ball that didn’t turn much, surprising Warner, who mishit it, causing the ball to loop in the air off the inside edge of his bat. Kuldeep, with keen focus, secured the catch near his waist.
Kuldeep was brought into the attack in the 13th over, just as Warner and Steve Smith had built a 49-run partnership, putting pressure on India’s fast bowlers on the spin-friendly pitch. Despite Warner’s fast start, he struggled in the middle overs and even offered a challenging caught-and-bowled opportunity to Kuldeep.
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WARNER DEPART!!!!
— 🚩🇮🇳 𝐑𝐈𝐒𝐇𝐈 𝐒𝐈𝐍𝐆𝐇 𝟏𝟖 ❤️ (@KOHLIGOATHAI) October 8, 2023
KULDEEP WITH BREAKTHROUGH ❤️🔥#WorldCup2023 #INDvsAUS pic.twitter.com/LgrVm6AOYN
Interestingly, prior to the World Cup, former cricketer and now commentator Aakash Chopra had predicted that Kuldeep would be among the leading wicket-takers in this edition of the tournament.
Aakash Chopra remarks: “I feel leg-spinners will do well in the tournament,” he said on his Youtube channel. The world’s best leg-spinner thus has to feature in the list. It would be interesting to see how Rohit Sharma uses Kuldeep Yadav. First, he will utilize him in the middle overs. You could see him bowling after 40 overs as well. He might bowl at least 2-3 overs.”
“If you defend him, it becomes easy and you might not lose your wicket. But when you go after him, you have to read the ball from Kuldeep’s hand. And if you don’t connect properly, you could end up finding a fielder. Kuldeep Yadav could be one of the top wicket-takers. He could be the highest wicket-taker as well,”
After that dismissal, India shifted the momentum in their favour against Australia. The scoring rate has decreased, and Rohit Sharma is strategically deploying his trio of spinners, utilizing them from both ends.
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