Murali Kartik urges regular spot for Kuldeep Yadav

Former India spinner Murali Kartik has called for Kuldeep Yadav to receive more consistent selection across formats, describing the left-arm wrist spinner as a match-winner despite the team's preference for all-rounders. Kartik made the remarks ahead of India's tour of New Zealand, which begins on 22 October.

Kartik noted that Kuldeep has taken 194 ODI wickets at 26.82 and 95 T20I wickets at 13.74, yet still struggles to string together consecutive games. He compared Kuldeep's situation to Varun Chakravarthy, arguing that a specialist bowler who can win matches should not be overlooked for batting depth alone.

Kartik said specialist bowlers hold an advantage under pressure because they know their craft and can deliver in tight situations. He added that Kuldeep is also a handy batter and fielder, making his exclusion harder to justify given his proven ability across all three formats.