‘Kuldeep should play in tests’

Phil Tufnell praises selectors’ decision of picking Yadav’s ‘rare’ talent in the five-day squad

England may have cracked the Kuldeep Yadav code, but former left-arm spinner Phil Tufnell says India will be better off playing him in the Test series as well, having done the good thing by picking the "rare" talent in the five-day squad.

Tufnell was full of praise for Yadav, marking him as a rarity.

"You don't come across too many left-arm wrist spinners. There are a few leg spinners around across all formats. Kuldeep is a rare bowler. When you come across his type of bowling, you need to really work it out because it is something you haven't seen before. It is a special thing, and a rarity really," said Tufnell.

When asked if Yadav should be in the playing eleven for the first Test starting in Birmingham on August 1, he replied, "I would definitely play him."

"It's a good thing India haven't sent Kuldeep home. Just look at the weather we have had. I think it is set to be similarly fair for the next month or so. So you never know India might even play three spinners depending on pitches and their combinations.

"India have three world class spinners in their Test squad, but I would definitely think of Kuldeep. I would want him hanging close around the English batsmen," he added.

Tufnell has said that the hosts won the ODI series because their spinners Adil Rashid and Moeen Ali outperformed Indian spinners.

Kuldeep Yadav took 6-25 in the first ODI at Nottingham, but then returned 3/68 and 0/55 in the next two matches at Lord's and Leeds. Yuzvendra Chahal managed only 2/135 across the three games.

In comparison, Adil Rashid and Moeen Ali shared eight wickets between them to bowl England to victory. Rashid, in particular, was quite impressive with hauls of 2-38 and 3-49 in the last two games where the Indian batting faltered.

He bowled a ripper to Indian skipper Virat Kohli at Headingley, who was bowled and left stunned as the ball turned sharply from leg to take the off stump. That dismissal changed the course of the third ODI as India went on to lose the series 2-1.

"Indian batsmen are very adept at playing spin bowling and have done so all their lives. (But) Rashid and Ali have a very good partnership going at the moment. They are very experienced in one-day cricket and were top of their game with some really dry weather here," Tufnell said.

"Plus, the pitches have been turning. If the pitches are turning, you have always got a chance as a spin bowler and it doesn't matter who you are playing against."