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This T20 World Cup could see the emergence of the ‘Kulcha’ combo. The way things are panning out, spinners Kuldeep Yadav and Yuzvendra Chahal could unite again to weave their magic for at least three to four years more. And the upcoming ICC event could be the start of all good things – a second innings for the spinners.
The earlier script was too predictable. With a constant battle raging between the south and west lobbies as to who would rule the roost, both Kuldeep and Chahal got crushed. If Kuldeep was figuratively suspended from playing in the national team for leaking the rift story between Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma, Chahal was tossed around for no prime reason, especially during ICC events.
With Gautam Gambhir coming into the scheme of things in Indian cricket, this type of lobbying could end for a while, and talented playes like ‘Kulcha’ could be given an extended run at the highest level. At least, this is the perception in the north that if a certain group of players are performing to their potential, they shouldn’t be deprived of playing regularly for India.
The fact that Chahal is back in the mix, means he should be given a chance to show what he can do for India. If this chance hadn’t come, Chahal would have lost the passion to play for India again. He would have retired and played those veteran leagues. Who knows? Similarly, if Kuldeep wasn’t allowed to come and play freely in the Delhi Capitals under Rishabh Pant, he would have been playing this T20 World Cup for some other national team. Who knows?
Another thing that worked in favor of ‘Kucha’ is that Indian coach Rahul Dravid backed these two quality spinners, and the buzz is that India could go ahead with three spinners in the playing XI. Along with Kuldeep and Ravindra Jadeja, Chahal could be the third spinner, with two fast bowlers Jasprit Bumrah and Mohammad Siraj. Vice-captain Hardik Pandya would be the sixth bowling option.
This also serves as good news for the Indian camp because the players are more or less aware of their roles. Only the batters need to figure out their combination. Otherwise, the ‘Kulcha’ combo is ready to fire on all cylinders!
