Kuldeep, who claimed a five-wicket haul (5/25) against Pakistan on Monday that helped India outclass the arch-rivals by a massive 228-run margin, said a bowler gets relaxed after bagging five-for but it was Suryakumar Yadav‘s pep talk that kept him going against Sri Lanka.
“You gave a pep talk before the game and asked me not to lose grip in this game. A bowler’s body language changes after bagging a five-for. He gets relaxed, through the confidence remains. It often happens with a bowler. So, that two minutes of pep talk really helped,” Kuldeep told Suryakumar in a conversation on bcci.tv.
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“I was determined to give my best, given that we were back on the field for the third straight day. So, thanks for that, Surya Bhai,” he added.
Kuldeep also spoke about how wicketkeeper KL Rahul played an important role in guiding him to take wickets.
“Since it was drifting too much, Rahul bhai advised me to keep the ball away from the off-stump. The length deliveries were not helping me to get wickets. So, when I bowled a bit wider, it drifted well and gave positive results. So, it was part of the plan. We did the same thing yesterday to get rid of Shadab. The idea was to utilize the spin by bowling away from the off stump. So, a big credit goes to Rahul as well,” Kuldeep said.
The left-arm spinner’s sensational effort also saw him become the fastest Indian spinner to take 150 ODI wickets in 88 matches.
He has taken 31 wickets from 15 matches this year, the highest by an Indian bowler in ODIs.
