Indian spinner Kuldeep Yadav had played only four T20s for Uttar Pradesh when Kolkata Knight Riders acquired his services during Indian Premier League 2014 auction for INR 40 lakh. Although he didn’t get to make an IPL debut that season, he played his first match for the franchise under former Indian batter Gautam Gambhir in Champions League Twenty20 later in the year.
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Although after a two-year long gap, Yadav was handed an IPL debut under the same captain for the same franchise. All in all, Gambhir led Yadav in 20 T20s across one CLT20 and a couple of IPL seasons between 2016-2017 before being released by KKR ahead of IPL 2018.
Gautam Gambhir Wanted Knight Riders To Release Kuldeep Yadav Before IPL 2021
Yadav, who impressed one and all with his skills, slowly cemented his spot in the Indian Playing XI across both the white-ball formats. However, he did undergo a slump in between especially in the absence of legendary Indian captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni behind the wickets.
Readers must note that IPL 2019 was the turning point in Yadav’s KKR career with respect to a downfall. In nine T20s, he managed to grab just four wickets at an average and strike rate of 71.50 and 49.50 respectively. Apart from Dhoni, the left-arm bowler also initiated conversations with current Indian captain Rohit Sharma in a bid to recover from a disastrous season.
In what was easier said than done, spinner Varun Chakravrathy‘s emergence at Knight Riders in the following season snatched the second spinner’s spot from Yadav. Yadav, who played just five IPL 2020 matches, returned with a solitary wicket. That said, in spite of giving him limited opportunities for reasons which weren’t very difficult to fathom, Kolkata retained Yadav for IPL 2021.
It was due to the very same reason that Gambhir wanted them to release the chinaman bowler to let him explore better opportunities elsewhere. A regular member of the Indian cricket team even after two mediocre IPL seasons, Yadav’s reputation and confidence on the back of consistently warming the bench were at stake as per Gambhir.
“I am surprised that Kuldeep Yadav was retained because he hadn’t got many chances. I wanted him to play for a team where he would get equal opportunities. If you’re playing for India but not making it to your franchise’s Playing XI, your career will somehow get affected,” Gambhir had told Star Sports in 2021.
While Yadav didn’t play a single match in the first leg of IPL 2021, he missed the second leg in the UAE due to an injury. Since his debut, this was the first time when Yadav didn’t feature even once throughout an IPL season.
“Gauti Bhai Supports Me…“ – Kuldeep Yadav
Having just graduated from the U-19 level, Yadav hadn’t even played a First-class or a List A match when KKR handed him a golden opportunity in CLT20 2014. It was during the same tournament when Yadav claimed that he used to feel like a “junior player” during his stint for Mumbai Indians in 2012. Having said that, the same wasn’t the case at Kolkata.
“Gauti bhai [Gautam Gambhir] always motivates me during the nets. Even during a match, he supports me. He is a very attacking captain and backs all the youngsters in the team and it feels nice when a senior players supports,” Yadav had told PTI.
Under Gambhir’s leadership, Yadav picked a total of 24 wickets at an average of 24.58, an economy rate of 8.08 and a strike rate of 18.25 during his formative years at Knight Riders.
