"He is world-class, but…"- Morne Morkel finally breaks silence on why Kuldeep Yadav hasn't got an opportunity in the ENG vs IND series

Kuldeep Yadav has played only 13 tests despite making his India debut in 2017.

India bowling coach Morne Morkel spoke about why Kuldeep Yadav, the Indian left-arm wrist spinner, is not in the plans of the Indian team management for test cricket. India’s preoccupation with playing batting all-rounders in the Anderson-Tendulkar Trophy 2025 against England has led to Kuldeep Yadav warming the bench in all four games so far.

Once anticipated that the wrist-spinner would use his sorcery to spin a web around the hosts in order to put Bazball to rest before the five-match series started. He hasn’t played a single game yet, though, and bowling coach Morne Morkel has finally acknowledged that batting cover is taken into consideration when choosing players for the current series.

After being bowled out for 358 in the first innings, England have amassed almost 600 runs and are over 200 runs ahead of India in the Manchester test.

No Indian bowler, not even Jasprit Bumrah, was able to leave a mark, as they were all hit around the park as England made merry. Joe Root smashed his 38th test century, becoming the second-highest run-scorer in tests.

“How can we get that batting line-up to get longer and stronger?” – Morkel on why Kuldeep Yadav is ignored

On day three, after stumps, India’s bowling coach spoke to the media, finally speaking out against the long-standing Kuldeep Yadav snub.

“I think it’s finding when he comes in, how we can find balance, and how we can get that batting line-up to be a little bit longer and stronger. We’ve seen in the past that we’ve lost wickets in clumps. Kuldeep is world-class, and he’s bowling really well at the moment, so we’re trying our best to find ways for him to get in. But unfortunately, with that, just to balance with batting, it throws it out a little bit,” Morkel told reporters.

Morkel argued that having greater batting protection is essential when playing England because the home team has a tendency to score a lot of runs on the flat tracks.

“I do think at the end of the day you need runs on the board, and for us obviously, giving that a little bit of extra batting protection, wanting to get totals of 400-plus. You need it against England, especially the way they play, their brand of cricket,” said Morkel.

Additionally, according to Morkel, Kuldeep Yadav will only be given a chance to play if the top six players begin to score runs more frequently; otherwise, it will be challenging for the spinner to get into the starting lineup.

“But to be honest, the wicket so far has been dry, and it’s actually spun a little bit. So that brings Washington into the game. It brings Jadeja into the game. So Kuldeep, we are trying to find a way for him, but it is just more that consistent runs from our top six that we want so that we can bring a guy like Kuldeep in,” he added.

Despite making his test debut in 2017, Kuldeep Yadav has played only 13 tests for India.

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