Kuldeep Yadav, drifting and diving into the calculation

It’s a pretty small sample size, and it tends to play only when an extra spinner is needed, which explains those numbers a bit. But only eight tests in five years? If Kuldeep feels poorly done, he would be justified, but there is a combination of factors at play. For a regular slot, he competes against two all-time great spinners, who, as finger spinners , are less of a gamble. As India only plays all five batters, the spinners bat is more than just a bonus. When playing outside, the lone spinner’s batting ability becomes an important factor, as R Ashwin will testify.

Yet, perhaps more than team combinations, Kuldeep’s intermediate fall in overrun cricket between those rare Test matches was steep. At times, there was a total loss of confidence in him, not only from India but also from the Kolkata Knight Riders. It has become a vicious circle. Coaches and captains have spoken of his lack of pace. The faster he tried to bowl, the less effective he became. The less effective he became, the less they played him.

It wasn’t really a question of rhythm. Behind the scenes, what the coaches really wanted was more vigor in his action, as former bowling coach Bharat Arun said. To a non-expert eye, some changes are visible. He runs straighter, the back foot lands parallel to the crease, the bowling arm is slightly closer to the ear, and the front arm puts in a lot more work.

Kuldeep coach Kapil Pandey said Hindustan time earlier this year that a key part of their job was to increase front arm speed and then regain accuracy.

A quick look at the speed gun in Chattogram will tell you that the change wasn’t so much about pace as it was about ball work. There was, in Arun’s words, vigor in the way Kuldeep played all four wickets. Drifting or dropping the ball helps it land a little short of where the batter expects it, creating the illusion that things are happening quickly due to the batter’s rushed reaction.

In two of his wickets, Kuldeep did the work in the air before any off-field action even came into play. Shakib Al Hasan was dragged off his first ball from Kuldeep, and the ball drifted dramatically to make him close his face when he defended in front of the body. The ball was on the outside when Shakib started to move and ended up throwing on or outside the leg stump.

Mushfiqur Rahim saw a really full ball that he felt he didn’t need to stretch forward for. But again, drifting and diving created the gap between his batting and throwing the ball. The bat got wider than it should have, and the ball also had enough time to pass it and catch it in the crease.

Nurul Hasan was caught with a sensational short-legged catch, but the ball spun sharply, causing him to play when he could have let it hit the pad. That wicket should have satisfied Kuldeep because, aside from the drift that dragged Nurul in, the turn was so quick that he ended up throwing his hands at it in a panic.

The fourth was a fault to a lower-order hitter, which should underscore Kuldeep’s importance when playing tail. Kuldeep told host broadcasters he got the trick and loved it. He said his work on getting “a little” faster was helping him.

Just to underline the depth of Indian cricket, Kuldeep probably wouldn’t have played if Ravindra Jadeja had played. In Ashwin, Jadeja and Axar Patel, India has a dream combination of three excellent spinners who can also hit with varying degrees of effectiveness.

This will likely depend on how much assist there is in a pitch – the longer the turn, the more Axar is likely to play – but even if Jadeja isn’t back to full fitness, India know that she still has three spinners to trouble Australia.