Champions Trophy: How Kuldeep Yadav has rung in technical changes to make his leg spin more lethal

Indian leg spinner Kuldeep Yadav picked the key dismissals of Rachin Ravindra and Kane Williamson in the final of the ICC Men’s Champions Trophy 2025 in Dubai on Sunday. In his opening spell, Kuldeep knocked over Rachin and followed it up with a brilliant reflex catch on the follow through to send Williamson back in the pavilion.

Kuldeep has progressed to become India’s frontline spinner in limited-overs cricket off late, and that nicely culminates what has been a fomirdable four-year-long journey of him transforming his technique to re-establish his stature in international cricket.

Kuldeep was phased out of the team in 2021 after a string of poor performances and injury issues. He underwent a knee surgery and was advised by physio Ashish Kaushik to devise a method through which he would end up applying less pressure on his right leg.

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“Once I was coming back from injury, it was physio Ashish Kaushik who advised that the load on my right leg should be less. Post rehab, I implemented that in my training and then in match situations and I felt the difference. It didn’t happen overnight though. It took around six months to get the rhythm back,” Kuldeep said.

Former Indian bowling coach Paras Mhambrey had appreciated Kuldeep for taking the initiative to make alterations that have propelled him to increase his speeds and deliver better line and lengths as well.  “The way he’s played, the way he has bowled in the last few years. It’s not just the numbers, it’s also the way you adapt. He offers a different variety to the team,” Mhambrey was quoted in a report by ESPN Cricinfo.

Across 113 ODIs, Kuldeep has struck 181 wickets at an economy touching just five runs per over. He has a bowling average of 26.47 in the format and was a key component of the side that clinched the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup title in West Indies last year.

Kuldeep used to give ample flight to the ball earlier on in his career, but he has yielded better returns in the last couple of years ever since the pace at which he bowls began touching 90 kmph regularly, as opposed to the 75 kmph-80 kmph phase that he used to operate in earlier.

Even against New Zealand, Rachin was caught slightly off-guard with the pace that Kuldeep bowled his first delivery of the match. He was forced into the backfoot before the ball took a deflection off the pads and rattled the stumps, while Williamson’s wicket was more because of the pitch slowing down and erasing pace off the shot that the batter had attempted.