IPL | Gautam Gambhir Guided And Taught me Everything: KKR’s Kuldeep Yadav

Kuldeep further reveals how Gambhir's advice helped him in his career and made him a confident player.

Leg Spinner Kuldeep Yadav said that former Kolkata Knight Riders skipper Gautam Gambhir guided and taught him everything during his initial stage of his career in the Indian Premier League.

Kuldeep became an instant success when he joined KKR and soon he became part of Team India’s limited-overs set up.

The leggie said that the 2014 U19 World Cup was the turning point of his career as the performances in the tournament helped him get selected for KKR.

“I was a senior player during the 2014 U19 World Cup and performances happened exactly according to expectations. From there I was selected for KKR and life changed drastically. I got plenty of time in KKR. There were a lot of senior players, especially Gautam Gambhir,” Kuldeep Yadav said in a video posted by KKR.

Kuldeep further reveals how Gambhir’s advice helped him in his career and made him a confident player.

“I always keep thanking him. He guided me as a leader and taught me everything. Even before I was about to play in the Champions League, he advised me what to bowl, how to hone my skills and become a confident player.”

Kuldeep said that the first season at KKR would always be important for him as the franchise took good care of him.

“In my first season with KKR, I was a youngster and our team was packed with the likes of Sunil Narine, Piyush Chawla and we had a few more good spinners in our squad,” Kuldeep added. “I always felt that it was a good time for me to learn and get better. I was coming out of my U-19 days. As KKR have always backed youngsters, they took good care of me. So that first season would always be important for me.”

Kuldeep has been retained by KKR ahead of the IPL 2021 mini-auction which is scheduled to take place on February 18.