"He would come up to me and say, 'Why have you dropped me?'" - Bharat Arun on Umesh Yadav

Former Team India bowling coach Bharat Arun has revealed how Umesh Yadav would question him about his axing despite performing well. The 60-year-old admitted that it used to be a harsh call, given how the conditions would dictate the fate of many fast bowlers.

Umesh Yadav has arguably been one of the top quick bowlers that India have produced in this generation. The Vidarbha quick made his Test debut in 2011 and is one of the few Indian bowlers to take 100 wickets on home soil.

However, due to the presence of peers like Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammed Shami, and Ishant Sharma, Umesh has been left on the sidelines on multiple occasions.

Speaking to Cricbuzz on their ‘Rise of New India’ show, former cricketer Bharat Arun recalled how he had to keep coming up with explanations for leaving out Umesh.

"There are many instances when Umesh was disappointed not being part of the team especially after doing very well," Arun said. "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," he added.

The 35-year-old right-arm seamer put on an exhibition of reverse-swing bowling in the recent India-Australia Test in Indore. He cleaned up the opposition tail cheaply, taking 3-12.

"He was a perfect team man that you would want to have in your side" - Bharat Arun

Umesh Yadav. (Image Credits: Getty)

Arun further acknowledged how Umesh would go days without speaking to him, but would eventually come to terms with the decision.

"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," Arun said. "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 added. "He was a perfect team man that you would want to have in your side.”

Umesh is likely to keep his place for the final Test against Australia in Ahmedabad, partnering Mohammed Shami as the second quick.