Rohit Sharma behind Kuldeep Yadav's resurgence, Virat Kohli preferred Axar Patel because of his batting capabilities, says Kuldeep's childhood coach

Kolkata Knight Riders franchise in the IPL, not enough chances in the national team, warming benches, carrying drinks, injury setbacks and a low-priced IPL 2022 contract - Kuldeep Yadav has gone through a lot in the past three years. But the left-arm wrist spinner is back with a bang and is currently second on the list of highest wicket-takers of IPL 2022, with 17 scalps. Kuldeep, who was part of the Kolkata Knight Riders unit from 2014 to 2021, was released by KKR last year and was bought for Rs. 2 crore (base price) by the Delhi Capitals. The wrist-spinner was roped in by KKR in 2014 and was handed his debut IPL cap in 2016. He steadily became a key member of the team, especially in the 2017 and 2018 seasons, in which he claimed, a cumulative, 29 wickets (12 wickets in 2017 and 17 wickets in 2018). But then came the dip. In 2019 and 2020 combined Kuldeep managed to take just 5 wickets in 13 IPL matches. In 2021, Kuldeep had a major knee surgery that ruled him out of the entire edition. Kuldeep's childhood coach Kapil Dev Pandey feels KKR failed to handle Kuldeep properly and the Chinaman bowler should be thankful that he was released by the two-time IPL champions. He spoke to TimesofIndia.com recently about this and more.

Kuldeep Yadav (Image credit: BCCI/IPL)"Kuldeep didn't get many chances in the last three years. Be it Tests, ODIs, T20Is, or IPLs, no one gave him opportunities. KKR didn't show trust in him. They didn't give him many chances. Kuldeep was disappointed, he has been in touch with me. I told him not to lose hope and not to miss any training, nets or practice sessions. I asked him to keep working hard and that would help him bounce back hard." Pandey told TimesofIndia.com in an exclusive interview.

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