Former World Cup-winning Australian captain Michael Clarke has strongly backed Indian wrist-spinner Kuldeep Yadav, hailing him as the finest all-format spinner in international cricket while expressing concern over his lack of consistent playing time. Speaking on the Beyond23 Cricket Podcast, the former Australian batter praised the 31-year-old's versatility across formats but questioned India’s selection decisions. Clarke remarked: "There are very few spinners playing all three formats. I think Kuldeep Yadav is the best all-format spinner in the world at the moment. He's a very good short-form bowler. But he's not getting enough opportunities." Despite these concerns, Clarke expressed optimism that Kuldeep would feature prominently in India’s upcoming white-ball fixtures.

Recent Omissions and County Resurgence

Clarke’s comments come during a period where Kuldeep has repeatedly found himself left out of India's starting XIs despite a stellar international record of 369 wickets in 194 appearances. The left-arm chinaman bowler was omitted from India's Test side during the Sri Lanka series following the opening Test in Galle and was subsequently left out of the national T20I squad for the Afghanistan series and the Asian Games. Responding to his international exclusions, Kuldeep returned to English county cricket with Yorkshire, where he registered his maiden First-Class 10-wicket match haul at Headingley, including career-best innings figures of six for 50 against Essex.

Player Perspective and Strategic Management

Addressing his rotation out of the national setup, Kuldeep acknowledged the personal frustration of sitting on the bench while maintaining a pragmatic perspective. Speaking in an interview with talkSPORT, Kuldeep admitted feeling disappointed when excluded from the playing XI but emphasised that team strategy and pitch conditions often dictate final selections. He noted that while every player desires to feature regularly, team management decisions must take priority.