New Delhi, Nov 3 : Former India left-arm spinner Maninder Singh on Tuesday termed Kuldeep Yadav's lack of regular game time a ‘mystery,’ saying he felt the team management did not have enough confidence in the abilities of the left-arm wrist-spinner.
Kuldeep has 201 wickets in 124 ODIs, more than any other bowler in India's present squad, yet he did not get a single game in the recent 3-2 T20I series win over New Zealand. Away from the sub-continent, Kuldeep’s non-selection often comes down to team balance.
Head coach Gautam Gambhir prefers batting depth that runs down to number eight, and with Hardik Pandya out, India has usually opted for three specialist quicks. As a result, Kuldeep has featured in only three of India's 35 matches in SENA countries over the past two years. Kuldeep, however, can come into the reckoning for the five ODIs, which begin at the Eden Park in Auckland on Wednesday.
"See, this has become a little mystery for me as well - that why Kuldeep Yadav is not being played regularly. He's a wrist spinner, who is very effective in one-day cricket, and T20 cricket. But according to me, Kuldeep Yadav will be very effective in Test cricket as well, if he is given that confidence.
"Because you must remember, a year and a half ago, there was a Test series in England ending 2-2, and we were very happy about it. I wasn't happy about it, because I know that if we played Kuldeep Yadav regularly in those five Test matches, India would have won that series by 3-1. This was and is my confidence in Kuldeep Yadav.
"But somewhere down the line, I feel that the team management doesn't have enough confidence in him, because of which he is not getting chances again and again, in all kinds of formats. It's because I think he is good in all kinds of formats. He has those variations, which are needed in all kinds of formats. Wrist spinners, especially left-arm wrist spinners, this breed is very rare in world cricket," Maninder told IANS during a virtual interaction facilitated by Sony Sports Network on Tuesday.
He also drew a parallel of Kuldeep’s current situation with that of former left-arm spinner Murali Kartik. "In this case, it would have been more important that we would have consistently given him confidence. I remember one incident, when Murali Kartik was bowling so well, but who were his captains at that time?
“Sourav Ganguly and Rahul Dravid, who used to play left-arm spinners very well and they felt that Murali Kartik didn't have that quality, which other bowlers had. Because of this, he didn't get many chances. So, I feel the same thing is happening here with Kuldeep Yadav. He doesn't get that confidence from the team management.
“Probably, there are some players and captains who feel that I can play very comfortably against him, so the rest of the world must be playing comfortably when facing him and maybe that's why he's not getting a chance. But this is still a mystery for me and it will remain a mystery as to why he was not given many chances," added Maninder.
Experience is in short supply in India's seam bowling department. Jasprit Bumrah is being rested to prepare for the Test series, while Prasidh Krishna and Harshit Rana are unavailable due to injuries. Mohammed Siraj, who has 77 wickets in 51 ODIs, is the attack's most experienced member.
All-rounder Nitish Kumar Reddy departs after the first game to get ready for the two Tests. Arshdeep Singh, who has 18 ODI caps, will also be needed to spearhead a group comprising Gurnoor Brar (nine caps), Anshul Kamboj and Auqib Nabi (one each) and Yash Thakur, who is uncapped and has been named only for the final two matches.
Should Kuldeep play, he will come up against Daryl Mitchell, who got the better of him when the teams met in the ODI series in India, which New Zealand won 2-1 earlier this year. According to CricViz, Kuldeep went at 7.28 an over in that series, his costliest ODI series ever, and picked up only three wickets in three games at an average of 60.7. Their battles so far have all come in Asia and this can be their first ODI meeting in New Zealand.
Mitchell's sweep has also been a reliable scoring weapon for him in ODIs. CricViz data shows he has made 147 runs from 109 balls with the shot against spinners since the beginning of 2024, a strike rate of 135, and is yet to be dismissed playing it. Maninder said Indian bowlers must look to take Mitchell's wicket rather than contain him.
Maninder said Indian bowlers must look to take Mitchell's wicket rather than contain him. "As far as Daryl Mitchell is concerned, he is a very positive cricketer and one of the players in New Zealand's batting line-up who makes an impact in the middle order. So if you are bowling against him, then keep one thing in mind that you have to take his wicket.
“If you think that you shouldn't let him make more runs then you are in trouble, as then you will start bowling flat. If I talk about a spinner or seamer, then the ball starts getting short. The ball doesn't move around, which gives him an advantage. But I think he is somebody who creates pressure on bowlers.
“He created pressure on Indian bowlers in India, but the pitches here were different. In pitches in New Zealand, there will be some help for the bowlers, which they should take advantage of. But one thing that Indian bowlers should think about is that we have to get him out and then you will see the penetration in their bowling."
On India's likely spin combination, with Kuldeep, Axar Patel and Naman Dhir as the options, Maninder stated, "First of all, I think the spin combination depends on the pitches, grounds, and the confidence of the team management. We are talking about Kuldeep Yadav constantly, but I don't think the team management has confidence in him and they will get chances regularly.
"As far as Naman Dhir is concerned, from what I have seen of him, I think he has the potential and it is very important because he makes fast runs in batting and is a very capable bowler. So, he should keep getting chances.
“I think this is very important. I have already talked about Axar Patel - he is such a player that when someone talks to him for 2-5 minutes before a match, he will be able to show his potential on the field."
India continues to miss seam-bowling all-rounder Hardik Pandya, who has been out of action since IPL 2026 due to a series of injuries, most recently a shin problem that kept him out of India A's 50-over series against Australia A in Puducherry in October.
Hardik has not played since IPL 2026 after a string of fitness setbacks. The latest of them, a shin issue, ruled him out of India A's one-day games against Australia A, and his fitness is a worry for India with the World Cup less than a year away. Maninder quipped that India were clearly missing the all-rounder.
"As far as Hardik Pandya is concerned, it is hurting the Indian team because he is such a great all-rounder when he is fit, we all know this. He has the ability to win single-handedly which is very important when you have an all-rounder in the side because he is such an all-rounder who does well in bowling as well.
"He has good variations but if his back or hamstring injury is leading to him not being 100 percent, then it can be a problem. As far as his batting is concerned, I think he is a very capable batter because we have seen him hitting big hits and making runs at important times. The most important thing when you play international cricket is mental strength.
"Mentally, he is very strong. So the Indian team must be missing such a player. But I think these are opportunities if you have another all-rounder then these are opportunities for them. It can be a blessing in disguise that you get another all-rounder like him.
“Although the team management has shown a lot of trust in Nitish (Kumar) Reddy, he hasn't been able to show much consistency. He gets injured again and again. So the Indian team is missing Hardik Pandya. There is no doubt about it," he elaborated.
While the bowling lacks experience, India's top order of Gill, Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli remains the engine room of the set-up. CricViz figures show that since January 2025, the Indian top-order have amassed 4,181 runs across 26 ODIs, averaging 63.3 and scoring at 104.3 runs per 100 balls, with 16 hundreds between them. No other side's top three comes close: South Africa's average 46.5 and England's 44.6.
The top three batters account for 59 per cent of India's runs over that stretch, the biggest share for any Full Member nation - the figure across all teams is 43 per cent. New Zealand's top three, by comparison, contribute 40 per cent. Gill has indicated that India will field all right-handed batters in the top four, and Maninder felt this is a right move.
"I differ a little. I believe that your best batters should play - be it left-handed or right-handed batters. It shouldn't make a difference because there was a time when we were watching the recent T20I games and the Asian Games, where only left handers made the top order.
“Only Shreyas Iyer used to come in the middle as a right-hander, but still the Indian team dished out a great performance. So I think the best batter should play - it doesn't really matter if it's a left hander or right hander.”
Kohli's recent record against New Zealand is impressive – amassing 519 runs in 10 ODIs against them since 2023, at an average of 51.90 and strike rate of 102, including two hundreds and two fifties. He has also been quicker out of the blocks this year, in his first 25 balls, Kohli strikes at 114, which is a big increase compared to a strike rate of 77 in his first 25 balls in 2025.
“I don't think we should think too much about the combination of left and right-handers because bowlers don't have as much trouble as we usually talk about bowling to the combination of left and right handed batters. I think if both are left handers or right-handers, then also bowlers have a problem because you have to adjust differently," concluded Maninder.
Watch India Tour of New Zealand 2026- New Zealand vs. India - 1st ODI on Wednesday, 4th November 2026, from 7:30 AM live on Sony Sports Ten 1 SD & HD, Sony Sports Ten 3 SD & HD (Hindi), Sony Sports Ten 4 SD (Tamil, Telugu, Kannada), Sony Sports Ten 5 SD & HD, Sony LIV & Sony Vizha.
Kuldeep has 201 wickets in 124 ODIs, more than any other bowler in India's present squad, yet he did not get a single game in the recent 3-2 T20I series win over New Zealand. Away from the sub-continent, Kuldeep’s non-selection often comes down to team balance.
Head coach Gautam Gambhir prefers batting depth that runs down to number eight, and with Hardik Pandya out, India has usually opted for three specialist quicks. As a result, Kuldeep has featured in only three of India's 35 matches in SENA countries over the past two years. Kuldeep, however, can come into the reckoning for the five ODIs, which begin at the Eden Park in Auckland on Wednesday.
"See, this has become a little mystery for me as well - that why Kuldeep Yadav is not being played regularly. He's a wrist spinner, who is very effective in one-day cricket, and T20 cricket. But according to me, Kuldeep Yadav will be very effective in Test cricket as well, if he is given that confidence.
"Because you must remember, a year and a half ago, there was a Test series in England ending 2-2, and we were very happy about it. I wasn't happy about it, because I know that if we played Kuldeep Yadav regularly in those five Test matches, India would have won that series by 3-1. This was and is my confidence in Kuldeep Yadav.
"But somewhere down the line, I feel that the team management doesn't have enough confidence in him, because of which he is not getting chances again and again, in all kinds of formats. It's because I think he is good in all kinds of formats. He has those variations, which are needed in all kinds of formats. Wrist spinners, especially left-arm wrist spinners, this breed is very rare in world cricket," Maninder told IANS during a virtual interaction facilitated by Sony Sports Network on Tuesday.
He also drew a parallel of Kuldeep’s current situation with that of former left-arm spinner Murali Kartik. "In this case, it would have been more important that we would have consistently given him confidence. I remember one incident, when Murali Kartik was bowling so well, but who were his captains at that time?
“Sourav Ganguly and Rahul Dravid, who used to play left-arm spinners very well and they felt that Murali Kartik didn't have that quality, which other bowlers had. Because of this, he didn't get many chances. So, I feel the same thing is happening here with Kuldeep Yadav. He doesn't get that confidence from the team management.
“Probably, there are some players and captains who feel that I can play very comfortably against him, so the rest of the world must be playing comfortably when facing him and maybe that's why he's not getting a chance. But this is still a mystery for me and it will remain a mystery as to why he was not given many chances," added Maninder.
Experience is in short supply in India's seam bowling department. Jasprit Bumrah is being rested to prepare for the Test series, while Prasidh Krishna and Harshit Rana are unavailable due to injuries. Mohammed Siraj, who has 77 wickets in 51 ODIs, is the attack's most experienced member.
All-rounder Nitish Kumar Reddy departs after the first game to get ready for the two Tests. Arshdeep Singh, who has 18 ODI caps, will also be needed to spearhead a group comprising Gurnoor Brar (nine caps), Anshul Kamboj and Auqib Nabi (one each) and Yash Thakur, who is uncapped and has been named only for the final two matches.
Should Kuldeep play, he will come up against Daryl Mitchell, who got the better of him when the teams met in the ODI series in India, which New Zealand won 2-1 earlier this year. According to CricViz, Kuldeep went at 7.28 an over in that series, his costliest ODI series ever, and picked up only three wickets in three games at an average of 60.7. Their battles so far have all come in Asia and this can be their first ODI meeting in New Zealand.
Mitchell's sweep has also been a reliable scoring weapon for him in ODIs. CricViz data shows he has made 147 runs from 109 balls with the shot against spinners since the beginning of 2024, a strike rate of 135, and is yet to be dismissed playing it. Maninder said Indian bowlers must look to take Mitchell's wicket rather than contain him.
Maninder said Indian bowlers must look to take Mitchell's wicket rather than contain him. "As far as Daryl Mitchell is concerned, he is a very positive cricketer and one of the players in New Zealand's batting line-up who makes an impact in the middle order. So if you are bowling against him, then keep one thing in mind that you have to take his wicket.
“If you think that you shouldn't let him make more runs then you are in trouble, as then you will start bowling flat. If I talk about a spinner or seamer, then the ball starts getting short. The ball doesn't move around, which gives him an advantage. But I think he is somebody who creates pressure on bowlers.
“He created pressure on Indian bowlers in India, but the pitches here were different. In pitches in New Zealand, there will be some help for the bowlers, which they should take advantage of. But one thing that Indian bowlers should think about is that we have to get him out and then you will see the penetration in their bowling."
On India's likely spin combination, with Kuldeep, Axar Patel and Naman Dhir as the options, Maninder stated, "First of all, I think the spin combination depends on the pitches, grounds, and the confidence of the team management. We are talking about Kuldeep Yadav constantly, but I don't think the team management has confidence in him and they will get chances regularly.
"As far as Naman Dhir is concerned, from what I have seen of him, I think he has the potential and it is very important because he makes fast runs in batting and is a very capable bowler. So, he should keep getting chances.
“I think this is very important. I have already talked about Axar Patel - he is such a player that when someone talks to him for 2-5 minutes before a match, he will be able to show his potential on the field."
India continues to miss seam-bowling all-rounder Hardik Pandya, who has been out of action since IPL 2026 due to a series of injuries, most recently a shin problem that kept him out of India A's 50-over series against Australia A in Puducherry in October.
Hardik has not played since IPL 2026 after a string of fitness setbacks. The latest of them, a shin issue, ruled him out of India A's one-day games against Australia A, and his fitness is a worry for India with the World Cup less than a year away. Maninder quipped that India were clearly missing the all-rounder.
"As far as Hardik Pandya is concerned, it is hurting the Indian team because he is such a great all-rounder when he is fit, we all know this. He has the ability to win single-handedly which is very important when you have an all-rounder in the side because he is such an all-rounder who does well in bowling as well.
"He has good variations but if his back or hamstring injury is leading to him not being 100 percent, then it can be a problem. As far as his batting is concerned, I think he is a very capable batter because we have seen him hitting big hits and making runs at important times. The most important thing when you play international cricket is mental strength.
"Mentally, he is very strong. So the Indian team must be missing such a player. But I think these are opportunities if you have another all-rounder then these are opportunities for them. It can be a blessing in disguise that you get another all-rounder like him.
“Although the team management has shown a lot of trust in Nitish (Kumar) Reddy, he hasn't been able to show much consistency. He gets injured again and again. So the Indian team is missing Hardik Pandya. There is no doubt about it," he elaborated.
While the bowling lacks experience, India's top order of Gill, Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli remains the engine room of the set-up. CricViz figures show that since January 2025, the Indian top-order have amassed 4,181 runs across 26 ODIs, averaging 63.3 and scoring at 104.3 runs per 100 balls, with 16 hundreds between them. No other side's top three comes close: South Africa's average 46.5 and England's 44.6.
The top three batters account for 59 per cent of India's runs over that stretch, the biggest share for any Full Member nation - the figure across all teams is 43 per cent. New Zealand's top three, by comparison, contribute 40 per cent. Gill has indicated that India will field all right-handed batters in the top four, and Maninder felt this is a right move.
"I differ a little. I believe that your best batters should play - be it left-handed or right-handed batters. It shouldn't make a difference because there was a time when we were watching the recent T20I games and the Asian Games, where only left handers made the top order.
“Only Shreyas Iyer used to come in the middle as a right-hander, but still the Indian team dished out a great performance. So I think the best batter should play - it doesn't really matter if it's a left hander or right hander.”
Kohli's recent record against New Zealand is impressive – amassing 519 runs in 10 ODIs against them since 2023, at an average of 51.90 and strike rate of 102, including two hundreds and two fifties. He has also been quicker out of the blocks this year, in his first 25 balls, Kohli strikes at 114, which is a big increase compared to a strike rate of 77 in his first 25 balls in 2025.
“I don't think we should think too much about the combination of left and right-handers because bowlers don't have as much trouble as we usually talk about bowling to the combination of left and right handed batters. I think if both are left handers or right-handers, then also bowlers have a problem because you have to adjust differently," concluded Maninder.
Watch India Tour of New Zealand 2026- New Zealand vs. India - 1st ODI on Wednesday, 4th November 2026, from 7:30 AM live on Sony Sports Ten 1 SD & HD, Sony Sports Ten 3 SD & HD (Hindi), Sony Sports Ten 4 SD (Tamil, Telugu, Kannada), Sony Sports Ten 5 SD & HD, Sony LIV & Sony Vizha.
