Kuldeep Yadav completes 50 Test wickets with fourth fifer: Stats
India's star left-arm wrist-spinner Kuldeep Yadav has completed 50 wickets in Test cricket. He accomplished the milestone en route to a brilliant five-wicket haul on Day 1 of the ongoing fifth and final Test against England in Dharamsala. This was his fourth fifer in Test cricket as England were folded for 218. Notably, Kuldeep finished with 5/72 in 15 overs.
A stunning spell from Kuldeep
Kuldeep was at his best as he dismissed five of England's top-six batters. After a 64-run opening stand, the spinner dismissed Ben Duckett (27) and Ollie Pope (11) to dent England's brilliant start. He then stopped Zak Crawley (79) from touching the three-figure mark. He also dismissed Joe Root (26) and Ben Stokes (0) in quick intervals as England went from 100/1 to 218/10.
Here are his Test numbers
Kuldeep completed 50 wickets with his fourth scalp in the game. Playing his 12th Test, he has now raced to 51 scalps as his average of 21.1 is the third-best among Indians with at least 50 scalps. As mentioned, this was his fourth Test fifer and a maiden one versus England. Overall, he has raced to 19 wickets against the Brits, averaging 22.52.
Kuldeep's run in the series
Despite being an X-factor, Kuldeep hasn't been picked regularly in India's Test XI. The team-combination across conditions has also impacted his selection. However, he has made his chances count in the ongoing series. He has raced to 17 scalps in this series as his preceding figures read 0/22, 4/22, 2/77, 2/19, 3/71, and 1/60.
