Delhi Capitals spinner Kuldeep Yadav made a match-winning contribution in his return to action in the ongoing Indian Premier League (IPL) on Friday to ease any concerns around his form or fitness.
The left-arm wrist-spinner, almost certain to be part of the India squad for the T20 World Cup in June, missed Delhi’s previous three matches with a groin injury.
On his return against Lucknow Super Giants, the 29-year-old Kuldeep showed his bag of tricks, claiming 3-20 as he bowled Delhi to their second win in six matches.
He sent down back-to-back googlies to dismiss Marcus Stoinis and Nicholas Pooran and also accounted for the wicket of Lucknow captain KL Rahul to lay the foundation for Delhi’s six-wicket victory.
“It was an important win for us after the back-to-back losses,” player-of-the-match Kuldeep told the IPL website after Delhi lifted themselves from the bottom of the points table in the 10-team league.
“Hopefully this win will give us the momentum. The middle overs are very important for any team. If you get wickets in those eight-nine overs, you stay in the game.
“Getting those wickets was important for my team and also for my own confidence.”
The delivery with which he cleaned up Lucknow’s leading run-scorer Pooran stood out.
“It was a good ball, a proper googly, which I landed on the good length and it spun a bit as well,” Kuldeep said.
“That was precisely my plan, and I had set the field accordingly. Luckily I landed in the right area.”