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Kuldeep Yadav terms the ball which dismissed Babar Azam a `perfect delivery`
Kuldeep pitched the bowl at a length which enticed Babar to come forward but the ball turned between bat and pad from off to leg and removed the bails.
Indian spinner Kuldeep Yadav on Sunday announced his arrival at the international stage by bowling a delivery he described as 'perfect'. Kuldeep, 24, dismissed Pakistani batsman Babar Azam on Sunday to turn the tide in India's favour in the high-octane clash against their arch rivals at Manchester.
Kuldeep pitched the bowl at a length which enticed Babar to come forward but the ball turned between bat and pad from off to leg and removed the bails. After the match, Kuldeep said that he was so pleased with that ball that he watched it again when the match was halted due to rain.
“It drifted and turned so any spinner would love that delivery. It was a proper delivery, a Test delivery, deceiving the batsman in the air and forcing him to make a mistake – a perfect delivery. I think it was one of the best balls of the tournament for me. Babar Azam, he is a good player of spin and from a team point of view a really good wicket. They were striking the ball very well and rotating the strike. After Fakar got out too, it put them under pressure,” ICC press release quoted Kuldeep as saying.
Kuldeep is without doubt the most eye-catching bowlers in the tournament and with 90 wickets from 47 games at an average of 22.50, he is someone to watch out for. His strike rate of a wicket every 27.40 balls is the best for any Indian bowler so far. Only Australian paceman Mitchell Starc and Afghanistan's spinner Rashid Khan have lower strike rates than Kuldeep.
“I bowled really well in the first game [versus South Africa], against Australia as well, and they were struggling to hit me. That is important for all spinners, when you have the rhythm. Against Pakistan too with the rotation of the ball and deceiving the batsman in the air, that is the most important thing for any spinner. That is my strength and I really love it," Kuldeep said.
“I knew the conditions were favourable for the spinners. I was getting a little bit of turn even in the first over. I only look for that when I get such a pitch, I really try to spin the ball," added the young spinner.