Rohit Sharma revealed how his insistence on working on his batting helped Kuldeep Yadav put on that brave show against England.
Besides India now having to worry less about who next after Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma after the young guns stepped up in the absence of some of the senior Test regulars in the series against a full-strength England side, there was another major positive for the home team that has been less talked about. It was witnessed through the course of the last three matches against England. India have unearthed another batting potential down the order in Kuldeep Yadav that has strengthened their tail. But despite the valiant show, which included a 76-run series-winning stand in Ranchi alongside Dhruv Jurel, India head coach Rahul Dravid was left laughing at the query of a potential batting promotion for Kuldeep in the Test XI after captain Rohit Sharma took the credit for the batting heroics.
Rohit Sharma and Rahul Dravid discuss about Kuldeep Yadav’s potential batting promotion
In Ranchi, as India looked to reduce the first-innings deficit of 134 after a top-order crumble, Jurel had waged a courageous battle against the England spinners with his knock of 90 that helped the hosts flatten the gap to just 46, which played a crucial role in the team clinching a five-wicket win. However, that wouldn’t have been possible without Kuldeep’s vigil at the other end of the crease with his 131-ball 28.
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In Dharamsala, despite India taking a healthy first-innings lead against England, a 49-run lower-order stand had left the visitors frustrated with Kuldeep playing the key role with his 69-ball 30. And his batting heroics came alongside his usual dominance with the ball as he snared 19 wickets, which included a fifer in Dharamsala.
Speaking to Jio Cinema after the win at the HPCA Stadium, Rohit revealed how his insistence on working on his batting helped Kuldeep put on that brave show against England.
“We know Kuldeep’s got something about him when he bowls. In the last couple of years, he’s just come along a long way after he was injured and the way he’s come back in white-ball cricket and now you got to see in red ball as well what he can do. He’s understood what he needs to do. He’s gone back, worked with his coaches, worked here as well. I see him bowling every time, putting one stump there and just getting that accuracy right. And then, obviously, I’ve been very critical about his batting. I’ve been the one who’s been pushing him to bat well. Go and work out whatever he can because it definitely adds up when you bat at No. 8 or 9. We know how crucial it is when you add those runs at the back end. And he’s got the ability to bat and play some shots as well,” he said.
When asked by the presenter whether Kuldeep asked for a promotion after his stellar batting show, Rohit laughed it off, reminding the presence of Ravichandran Ashwin and Ravindra Jadeja, who have nine Test centuries between themselves.
“I mean, you got to talk to Ashwin and Jadeja for that,” the Indian skipper said before Dravid, who was part of the discussion, interrupted to say: “He needs to get three Test hundreds before he can ask for a promotion,” and burst into laughter.
Rohit, however, was quick to admit that Kuldeep’s performance certainly helps them strengthen their batting order.
“I’m very happy with his batting. He’s played a crucial role with the bat as well. In Rajkot, we wanted that partnership. It was the fourth day, morning, I think with Gill and him batting there. Although Gill was not quite pleased with that runout. But what makes this team quite happy is also enjoying each other’s success. Gill was quite happy about how Kuldeep batted when he came out rather than going and criticising him about that run. It definitely adds up to us when he bats like that and he puts runs on the board for us. It gives us another addition to our batting lineup,” he concluded.
