‘Uska waqt aagaya’: Inside Kuldeep Yadav’s race against time before Sri Lanka

Kuldeep Yadav, the 31-year-old wrist-spinner for India, faces a critical turning point as he prepares for the One-Day Cup match against Sri Lanka. Despite spending significant time on the bench during India's recent tour of Ireland and England, Yadav sees this series as "Uska waqt aagaya" or his moment to shine. His childhood coach and current mentor, Kapil Dev Pandey, believes that Yadav has the skills to become a match-winner and has the experience to handle the pressure.

However, Yadav's path to regular selection has been fraught with challenges. Understudy to Ravindra Jadeja as the third spinner, he has only played five Tests since 2014, while Washington Sundar has been preferred ahead of him. With the retirement of Ashwin, the pressure on Yadav has increased, and Manav Suthar's arrival adds to the uncertainty.

Pandey emphasizes that Yadav must regain his rhythm and trust his skills against experienced batsmen. He has been working with Yadav to bowl with various types of balls, focusing on maintaining the basics regardless of the pitch conditions. The importance of this series is not lost on Yadav, who had sessions with Pandey in Kanpur to sharpen his skills before heading to Sri Lanka.