“That Injury Gave Him No Option But To Get Fitter” – Bharat Arun Recalls Kuldeep Yadav’s Comeback Post Injury

Former India bowling coach Bharat Arun recalled Kuldeep Yadav’s comeback from injury in 2021. He revealed that the spinner put in a lot of hard work and got fitter recovering from an injury during his rehabilitation.

Kuldeep Yadav has been in a good rhythm in the last two years across formats. He has made some changes to his bowing since the 2022 Indian Premier League. Before that, he has had a lot of ups and downs in his career. Kuldeep’s comeback hasn’t been an easy ride. Bharat Arun revealed an incident when former head coach Ravi Shastri had an honest conversation with the left-arm wrist-spinner about the latter’s fitness.

“This puppy fat you have na has to be melted away, boss! I can’t think of a single reason with improved fitness that you won’t become a world-class Test bowler,” said Bharat Arun to Indian Express.

Kuldeep suffered a serious knee injury in 2021 and was sidelined as it needed surgery. Bharat Arun feels that the injury forced Kuldeep to get fitter. He said,

“It seems rather silly to say this but that injury, I think, gave him no option but to get fitter. He had to do all the hard rehab work, shed himself of that puppy fat, to continue his dream of playing cricket. And he worked a lot on his bowling – that energy through the crease is a standout feature now. It allows him to increase pace without sacrificing turn, loop, and drift.”

Bharat Arun highlights the technicalities behind Kuldeep Yadav’s strong comeback

Former India head coach Bharat Arun further highlighted the technicalities behind Kuldeep Yadav’s successful run. He expressed that he worked on the delivery stride as well as the arm speed of Kuldeep Yadav, in his 2.0 version. Bharat Arun said,

“I got his delivery stride shorter, front arm better, arm speed better, got him to rip more revolutions on the ball … Ravi Shastri asked me, ‘Sunil, what have you done with Kuldeep?’. I said, ‘Ravi bhai, I have not done anything special. If you look at Kuldeep 2.0, his front arm is going toward the target, his bowling arm is towards the target. He is running towards the target. Shorter stride, there is a free follow-through, he has got quicker through the air.”

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