Ouch indeed. When a captain brings up a jab like that out of the blue, and the interviewer follows it with “absolutely, on this surface”, you can imagine how it lands — especially if you’ve bowled three of your four overs, spent the entire innings in the field, and still felt the match go the way it did.
With Delhi Capitals choosing to bat on a surface that seemed to promise help for spin as the contest unfolded, Kuldeep Yadav’s figures stood out sharply. The opposition spin unit struck for 3 wickets while conceding 41 runs across seven overs. Axar Patel, too, finished with 1 for 25 in his four overs — yet Kuldeep ended up giving away 34 runs in three overs without taking a wicket.
These results don’t automatically become meaningless because they were discussed without context. Kuldeep’s numbers were not the only reason the match tilted away from DC. The decision to bat first looked questionable, their batting didn’t find the rhythm they needed and they were forced to bring in an additional specialist as the Impact Player. T Natarajan also had a tough outing. Still, it appears the frustration around Kuldeep’s performances has been building for some time.
Look at Kuldeep’s IPL season totals and the sense of unease becomes easy to understand. Across this tournament, 21 spinners have bowled their quota beyond seven overs. None of them has leaked more runs per over than Kuldeep’s 10.36. Equally telling is the wicket cost: no other bowler’s wickets have come at a higher price than Kuldeep’s seven scalps, and those wickets have arrived at an average of 44.42.
He has time to fix things, but it’s hard to argue against the idea that Kuldeep is having his worst IPL. Even in 2019, his lowest point in the league — when he managed only four wickets across nine matches — he still conceded at 8.66 an over. This season, he returned under heavy scrutiny in 2019, including from within his own camp, but in 2024 he has mostly slipped beneath the spotlight and played every game for Delhi Capitals, who currently sit seventh in the standings with just eight points from 10 matches.
During DC coach Hemang Badani’s press interaction, it was clear the team wanted more production from their wrist spinner — although he also sounded supportive. It isn’t as if the squad is stocked with another proven match-winning option of that same spin profile.
“We would ideally want to be better than this,” Badani said. “But we will rally around him. He has been somebody who has been part of this side for many many years. He has done well for many many years. I think he can turn this around.
“I think more the case of someone striking form. He hasn’t struck peak form yet. He hasn’t bowled at the speeds he would normally bowl. It is a question of time. We have the faith in him.”
Back to pace, then. Kuldeep’s slower tempo in the air has been present under the surface across his career, because it gives batters extra time to settle — even when they’re beaten in flight. And for what it’s worth, his pace this year doesn’t look drastically different from the last IPL, when he took 15 wickets and went for 7.07 per over. At present, he remains the most likely option to bowl around the 86–87 kmph range.
At that speed, you expect a spinner to extract more turn. But that balance hasn’t quite materialised. Even in this meeting against Chennai Super Kings, Axar was able to get more grip than Kuldeep despite being a finger spinner, and despite bowling two overs with the new ball during the powerplay.
That lack of turn is likely what DC’s management should be most concerned about now — especially since they’ve already put the spotlight squarely on Kuldeep.
