Kuldeep Yadav is an Indian international cricketer who plays for the Indian national cricket team and the Delhi Capitals in the Indian Premier League. He is a left-arm unorthodox spin bowler and a capable lower-order batsman.
Yadav was born on 14 December 1994 in Kanpur, Uttar Pradesh, India. He comes from a humble background and his father, Narendra Yadav, is a brick kiln worker. Yadav has two sisters, Anushka Singh Yadav and Anita Yadav.
Yadav started playing cricket at a young age and joined the Bharat Singh Cricket Academy in Kanpur at the age of 12. He was initially a fast bowler, but his coach Kapil Pandey asked him to switch to left-arm wrist spin. Yadav struggled initially, but he eventually mastered the art of wrist spin bowling.
Yadav made his international debut for India in a Test match against Australia on 25 March 2017. He made his ODI debut against the West Indies on 25 June 2017 and his T20I debut against the West Indies on 9 July 2017.
Yadav has had a successful ODI career so far. He has taken 150 wickets in 89 ODIs at an average of 25.65 and a strike rate of 5.11. He has also taken two hat-tricks in ODIs, one against Australia in 2017 and the other against the West Indies in 2019.
Yadav has also had a successful T20I career so far. He has taken 52 wickets in 32 T20Is at an average of 14.58 and a strike rate of 6.62. He has also taken a five-wicket haul in T20Is, against the Netherlands in 2018.
Yadav has not had a very successful Test career so far. He has taken 34 wickets in 8 Tests at an average of 21.56 and a strike rate of 3.44. However, he has shown glimpses of his potential in Test cricket, taking a five-wicket haul against Australia in 2018.
Yadav holds a number of records and achievements in international cricket. He is the fastest Indian bowler to reach 50 wickets in ODIs (24 matches). He is also the first Indian bowler to take two hat-tricks in ODIs.
Yadav has won a number of awards and honors in his career. He was named the ICC Emerging Player of the Year in 2017. He was also named the Man of the Series in the 2017-18 ODI series against Australia.
Yadav has never captained India, but he has captained Uttar Pradesh in domestic cricket.
Yadav has not been involved in any major controversies in his career.
Yadav is a private person and does not reveal much about his personal life. He is unmarried and has no children.
Kuldeep Yadav is one of the most talented bowlers in the world today. He is a mystery spinner who can deceive batsmen with his variations. He has had a successful international career so far, and he is expected to play a major role for India in the years to come.