A buoyant India arrived in Colombo with the prospect of clinching a third consecutive series in Sri Lanka, after going 1-0 up with a 165-run win in the series opener at Galle.
The win was built on standout performances from Devdutt Padikkal and Manav Suthar, whose runs and wickets helped India dominate the series opener. But despite the convincing result, Kuldeep Yadav endured a relatively quiet outing, finishing with match figures of 1/103 from 25 overs.
Spin bowling coach Sairaj Bahutule insisted the left-arm wristspinner had simply fulfilled the role the team required.
“He’s been bowling extremely well. Just the situation that arose in Galle; he had to play a different role, and he tried his best to adapt and tried to execute as much as possible. I think he was playing his role. I think we had to see how the trajectory or the speeds worked in every session. As the days went by and there was a demand for different types of speeds and different types of trajectories, he definitely made an effort to bowl that way,” Bahutule told reporters on Friday.
Bahutule also made it clear that Kuldeep’s performance in the first Test would not affect his standing within the team.
“It all depends on the conditions. How, what is the need at that particular time, in different conditions, what would be the right combination, is fast bowling an option, is adding a spinner an option, and Kuldeep, look, for me, I think he has been a fabulous bowler over the years.”
“Yes, the wickets sometimes are slow, and sometimes the ball operates differently for the spinners on certain surfaces. But for me, he has always been a match winner, and he definitely is in the scheme of things, but we will again decide on the combination,” Bahutule added.
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India have four spin options in the squad – Kuldeep, Ravindra Jadeja, Manav Suthar and Saransh Jain – and Bahutule said the final combination for the second Test would be dictated entirely by conditions.
“It all depends on the conditions. What is needed at that particular time? What is the right combination? Is an extra fast bowler the better option, or is another spinner the better option?”
“Finger spinners, you can manipulate the fingers and bowl at the speeds you want to bowl. So, it is definitely a tough proposition for a spinner, but I don’t think one game decides on the way he (Kuldeep) has been performing and the way he is approaching his cricket. He has been a match-winner for India,” the former India leg-spinner said.
Bahutule reserved special praise for Suthar, whose control and consistency have quickly made him a dependable option in India’s attack.
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“He is somebody who is very accurate. His trajectories are just getting better and better, puts in a lot on the ball, the revs are good and he is somebody who is like a banker for us, consistently being in the lengths which we want to and that’s how he is also evolving, he is also growing and we try and keep it very simple to be honest, not complicate things and work on his strengths,” he said.
