There's nothing like watching Kuldeep Yadav on top of his game, bamboozling the batsmen with his tricks. The chinaman, not too long ago, formed a potent spin combo with Yuzvendra Chahal, with the duo christened as 'KulCha', in Indian colours.
He was also an integral part of the Kolkata Knight Riders unit in the IPL until 2019. He could manage only one wicket in five minutes in 2020 season and was dropped from the team. He was benched for the first half of the next season and missed the rest of the tournament because of a knee injury. Having joined KKR in 2016, Yadav played 45 matches, taking 40 wickets at an average of 30.9.
The left-arm spinner was given a fresh lease of life in this edition of the IPL, with Delhi Capitals buying him at the auction for Rs 2 crore. He found a supportive captain in Rishabh Pant and a master tactician in head coach Ricky Ponting. He has repaid their trust by emerging as the second highest wicket-taker in the tournament so far, with 17 wickets. Also, he has been the player of the match in all the four wins Capitals have recorded so far.
But, what has made his comeback sweeter are his match-winning performances in the two matches against his former franchise, KKR. In the first match, he took 4/35 to help the Capitals win the match by 44 runs. He returned to haunt the Kolkata franchise in their second encounter, taking 4/14 to help restrict KKR to 146/9.
Experts and data suggest that he is bowling quicker now - his average speed this season has been 86.6kph, up from 81.9kph in the IPL till 2021. He is also spinning the ball more and, in his own words, is mentally more stronger now. "I might have become a better bowler, but I am mentally stronger than before. When you fail in life you pick what you can improve on and that is something I had to improve. I don't get scared of failing now," the left-arm wrist spinner said.
Former New Zealand captain Daniel Vettori feels Yadav is bowling with a lot of energy now.
"Looks like Kuldeep has got the energy, a faster arm action, and now he has got the skill to take over because of that base. It's also the release point. It's about bowling fast with more revolutions on it, and you see the seam position," Vettori told ESPNcricinfo's T20 Time:Out.
"Now he seems more settled - he is obviously the first choice for Delhi and he is forcing his case for being back in the Indian team. It's all about what he's done and how he's improved as a bowler."
Yadav has now equalled his 2018 haul from 16 games. "This has to be my best IPL season, definitely," the spinner said after his 4/14 performance. "I'm enjoying bowling, and I've become a lot clearer with my plans. I gave away some runs in certain matches but I've backed my skills."