'It is an honour to play alongside him' - Kuldeep opens up about learning from Jadeja

Published - 15 Jun 2025, 22:10 IST | Updated - 15 Jun 2025, 22:18 IST

The spinner Kuldeep Yadav revealed that he has been spending a lot of time with veteran all-rounder Ravindra Jadeja, both on and off the field. He shared that he has been learning from Jadeja and picking his brain ahead of India’s upcoming five-match Test series, which begins on June 20.

Kuldeep has featured in only one Test match in England so far. But Jadeja’s all-round abilities make him the front-runner to be India’s first-choice spinner for the tour. Kuldeep is likely to make the playing XI if the pitch conditions favour two spinners.

"Playing alongside Jadeja is such a great honour for me. Obviously, Jadeja and [R] Ashwin have been brilliant over the last few years. When I made my debut in India, they helped me a lot. And even now, we have been having a lot of chats about how to bowl to certain batters, given the way the England batters are batting at the moment,” Kuldeep said.

"I'm actually spending a lot of time with him, not only on the field, but also outside as well. So it has actually helped me a lot in terms of tactics and the field placements, and he has given some tips as well," he added.

Kuldeep Yadav mentioned that he has taken Rohit Sharma’s usual seat next to Jadeja on the team bus, intentionally choosing to sit beside to learn from him. He admitted that with Ravichandran Ashwin now retired, he is making the most of every opportunity to learn from whichever senior player is available.

"I can never take Rohit bhai's place. It's just that I'm spending a lot of time with Jaddu bhai. It's obviously very important for me as a spinner, because Ash bhai [Ashwin, also retired] isn't there, and I've learned a lot from Ash bhai, and now that he isn't there, [I'm looking to learn from] whichever senior player is there," Kuldeep concluded.