Ravichandran Ashwin has criticised the Indian team management for the ‘bizarre’ handling of spinner Kuldeep Yadav. He noted how the Rahul Dravid and Rohit Sharma-led management ‘saw the proof in the pudding’ when they strongly backed Kuldeep, but Gautam Gambhir and Co. have left him in the lurch again.
Dravid coached India from November 2021 to June 2024, with Rohit as the all-format captain for most of his tenure. In this period, Kuldeep played six Tests, 38 ODIs, and 17 T20Is. Since Gambhir took over, he has featured in six Tests, 17 ODIs and 14 T20Is in a shorter span.
The major frustrations for the left-arm wrist-spinner have been getting only one match in the 2026 T20 World Cup, where he sat behind Varun Chakaravarthy. And now, he was overlooked
for the upcoming England and Ireland T20I tours, with leg-spinner Ravi Bishnoi getting the nod ahead of him.
“The way Kuldeep Yadav has been handled is bizarre,” Ashwin said on ESPNcricinfo. “Kuldeep, when the last team management was around with Rahul Dravid and Rohit Sharma, he was well backed, and everyone saw the proof in the pudding as he was delivering match-winning performances. But again in the last 18 months, Kuldeep finds himself with a lot of question marks.”
Ashwin admitted that Kuldeep didn’t help himself with his IPL 2026 performances, as he managed only 10 wickets at a career-high economy rate of 10.30. He remained in the Test squad and started the ongoing match against Afghanistan. Ashwin asked him to make it count and make sure that things don’t get too out of his hands on the flat home tracks.
“Test cricket must now be his priority, and he must take it on,” Ashwin said.
Did Ravi Bishnoi deserve to pip Kuldeep Yadav?
Bishnoi was in contention for the 2026 T20 World Cup, for he played in the New Zealand rubber before the tournament. But, still, his call-up timing is as surprising as Kuldeep’s snub, for the leg-spinner played only nine matches in IPL 2026 for 11 wickets at an ER of 9.88 before getting dropped by the Rajasthan Royals.
Ashwin remembered how Bishnoi was in Kuldeep’s place in December 2023, when he was dropped from the 11 for the latter despite being the world’s top-ranked bowler. In 2024, Bishnoi slowly lost his place in the squad, too, with Varun Chakaravarthy’s form and Axar Patel’s batting ability pushing him out.
“So what goes around comes around. He didn’t have a great IPL, and on the back of not playing the back half of the IPL, he is back in the T20 setup. These are circular calls in many ways. But version 2.0 of Ravi Bishnoi needs to turn up because he misses his length way too much now than he must, and he must rediscover his mojo,” said Ashwin.
