Kuldeep Yadav’s Exclusion From Second Test Despite His Rich Haul Surprises Everybody

There is so much hue and cry around Kuldeep Yadav, all emanating from Bangladesh. Recalled for a multi-day Test match after a gap of 21 months — for the first Test at Chattogram — he took eight wickets, scored 40 runs, was declared the man of the match and then what happens! Dropped for the second Test at Dhaka because of the appearance of a green-top surface. Instead of Yadav, skipper K L Rahul goes for left arm seamer Jaydev Unadkat who had played his previous Test in the winter of 2010!  The tour selection committee’s choice of the seamer over the spinner has warranted a thumbs down reaction from former India captain and media personality Sunil Gavaskar. Obviously Yadav must have been hurt when he was informed about the captain’s decision. Not long ago, Kuldeep was one half of the callow, “Kul-Cha” spin-pair; the second half being Yuzvendra Chahal. These two wrist spinners of the unorthodox variety had replaced the then successful finger spinners, Ravichandran Ashwin- Ravindra Jadeja duo. Following their inability to get wickets against Pakistan in the 2017 ICC Champions Trophy, both were given the short shrift.  Yadav and Chahal held their own — though Chahal never played for India in whites. Soon Yadav fell by the wayside and after a long time staged a successful comeback before the colour of the surface brought the axe down on him!