Former Indian bowling coach Bharat Arun has revealed that Umesh Yadav used to be disappointed whenever he was dropped from India’s playing XI in Test matches. With the likes of Jasprit Bumrah, Ishant Sharma and Mohammed Shami doing well, Yadav got sporadic chances in the final XI.
However, Yadav has been a consistent performer in the Indian conditions as he can get the ball to reverse swing. During the third Test match against Australia at Indore, the experienced pacer scalped three wickets in the first innings and also completed 100 wickets in Indian conditions, becoming the 13th fast bowler and the fifth Indian to get to the landmark.
The 35-year-old made his Test debut back in 2011 and he has scalped 168 wickets in 55 Test matches at an average of 29.8. However, with the rise of Mohammed Siraj, Yadav has gone down in the pecking order.
Bharat said on Cricbuzz, “There are many instances when Umesh was disappointed not being part of the team especially after doing very well. But I had a lot of explaining to do because he would come up to me and say, ‘Why have you dropped me? What wrong did I do?’
“It was a very tough call because there are only that many fast bowlers you could play in terms of what they had done and their form, especially when Shami, Bumrah and Ishant were the fast bowlers with Hardik Pandya to chip in as the fourth fast bowler back when he was playing Test cricket. Umesh was bowling beautifully but was consistently being dropped.”
Furthermore, Arun hailed Umesh for being a team man despite getting consistently dropped from the final XI.
“Sometimes he would get so angry that he would not speak to me for a day but then he would come to me and say I understand. Even when I speak to him I say, ‘If you are not angry, there is something wrong with you. If it doesn’t happen, you are accepting things meekly.’
“Umesh was magnificent. He was a perfect team man that you would want to have in your side.”
Umesh Yadav will look to continue the good show if he gets his chance in the fourth Test match against Australia, which will be played at the Narendra Modi Stadium, Ahmedabad from March 9.
