India spin bowling coach Sairaj Bahutule has backed Kuldeep Yadav ahead of the second Test against Sri Lanka. The star spinner struggled to live up to expectations in the Galle Test, after which some of the experts raised the question of whether Saransh Jain should start ahead of Kuldeep. Bahutule, however, said that the wrist-spinner remained in good form despite adapting his bowling to the conditions in Galle.
“He's been bowling extremely well. It's just that the situations that arose in Galle, he had to play a different role. So that's all he had to adapt to, and he tried his best to adapt to that role and tried to execute as much as possible,” Bahutule said in the press conference.
Notably, Kuldeep bowled with a flatter trajectory in the first Test. The pitch also became slower as the Test progressed. Addressing that, Bahutule said Kuldeep continued to operate according to his strengths as a wrist-spinner.
“We had to see how the trajectory or the speeds work in every session. And as the days went by, and as there was a demand for different types of speeds and different types of trajectories, he definitely was making an effort to bowl that. He was playing his role. Each bowler has his own strengths. He was operating as a wrist-spinner in a way, where obviously the wicket got slower and slower each day. But I'm sure he was bowling the way he normally bowls,” Bahutule said.
Bahutule reflects on Manav Suthar’s success
Bahutule also praised Manav Suthar for his progress after making the transition from domestic cricket to the international level. The young spinner has gained substantial experience in the Ranji Trophy.
“He's somebody who, since he's been bowling, has bowled a lot in domestic cricket in the Ranji Trophy. He's done the hard yards, and he's come into international cricket. So he understands his bowling well,” the bowling coach said.
The coaching staff are working with Suthar on reading different conditions and batters. The aim is to help him make effective decisions without moving away from his strengths.
"What we try to do is see how we can get that awareness of bowling in different conditions, different pitches, different batters, left-hand, right-hand, what is the need at that particular time, what would be the most effective way and what will be the ideal fields,” the 53-year-old added.
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