Top 5 Indian ODI bowlers of the decade

#3 Kuldeep Yadav

Kuldeep Yadav

Matches - 53, Wickets - 96, Average - 23.86, Economy Rate - 4.95, Best Figures - 6/25

Speaking of Kuldeep Yadav, the young chinaman bowler makes his entry at No.3 in the list. In a career that has run almost parallel to Chahal, Yadav has made his impact as a quick-learning bowler. He has never been afraid to toss the ball up, but there was criticism at times that he was too slow in the air, thus giving the batsmen ample time to set themselves up against him. Yadav though has made the adjustments and turned into India’s match-winning spinner.

The left-arm spinner’s finest moment came when he bowled a mesmerising spell against England at Nottingham in July 2018. After the hosts raced to 73 in 10.1 overs, Yadav put the breaks on the innings in the best way possible, by picking up wickets. He had six of them, and, before England knew, they had been bundled out for 268. Mind you, this was no weak England team. In fact, it was the same top and middle-order that would play starring roles in England’s World Cup triumph a year later. Yadav got them all -- Jason Roy, Jonny Bairstow, Joe Root, Ben Stokes, Jos Buttler. It is a different matter that Yadav was taken for 72 in 10 overs by the same opponent in the World Cup.

Yadav should get better with experience though. His fighting abilities were evident in the second ODI of the 2017 series against Australia at Eden Gardens when, after being hit for 39 in seven overs, he came back and clinched a hat-trick -- the third Indian to do so in ODIs.

With some refining, Yadav can become the spinning game changer for India on a more consistent basis.