'Couldn’t pick the line, couldn’t pick the spin' - Wasim Jaffer heaps praise on Indian wrist spinner after dazzling show in 1st WI vs IND ODI

India defeated West Indies by five wickets in the first of the three ODIs at Barbados. As such, former India batter Wasim Jaffer dissected the game afterwards. He was especially impressed by the Indian spin bowling. He spoke at length about Kuldeep Yadav’s impact on the game. The wrist-spinner returned with match-winning figures of 4/6 in three overs. He was awarded the ‘Man of the Match’ for his extraordinary spell.

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“That’s what wrist spinners can do . If you can’t pick him, then you can’t play him. Sometimes, to a finger spinner, you know what’s coming out. But, with wrist spinners, the ball can go both ways. That’s what happened,' he said in an interaction with ESPN Cricinfo.

“Other than Shai Hope, the other guys couldn’t pick him - couldn’t pick the line, couldn’t pick the spin. Wrist-spinners can break partnerships and run through the tail and that’s what Kuldeep is good at. When he gets going, he can run through a side, can get you that double or triple strike in quick time. That’s exactly what he did today,” the 45-year-old added.

Other than Kuldeep Yadav, Ravindra Jadeja also impressed Wasim Jaffer

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After Kuldeep Yadav, Jaffer also mentioned Ravindra Jadeja in his analysis. The left-arm spinner was India’s second-best bowler with figures of 3/37 in six overs. While batting, he remained not out at 16 off 21, including one boundary. “There was spin and bounce on the pitch. Watching it on TV, I could sense that Ravindra Jadeja is in the game. He obviously made it count. He generally doesn’t get that help. In ODIs, you normally get good batting wickets where teams score 280-300 or more. When he gets this kind of help, he’s dangerous,” he said.

Talking of India’s batting, opener Ishan Kishan remained the top-scorer with 52 off 46, including seven boundaries and a six. Rohit Sharma and Ravindra Jadeja remained unbeaten are they drove the team home by five wickets. But, the likes of Suryakumar Yadav, Shubman Gill, Hardik Pandya, and Shardul Thakur disappointed fans with their short stays at the crease.