The camaraderie between the Indian cricket team was on full display in the Dharamshala Test. Having reduced the England team to just 218 in just 57.4 overs, Rohit Sharma and co. joyfully walked off the field to have a bat themselves. However, as is tradition, the highest-scoring Aker leads the team off the pitch. But Kuldeep Yadav, who took a brilliant five-wicket haul, refused to do so.
Instead, he wanted Ravichandran Ashwin to lead the team, as the senior statement was playing his 100th Test match for India. But the spinner was having none of it. He refused the red cherry twice to flaunt to the crowd and told his junior to enjoy his success. “You can keep this one; I got 35 (five-wicket hauls). So you keep it,” said Ashwin to the wrist spinner telling him to led the team.
Talking with JioCinema, Kuldeep Yadav was asked, and we saw images of you and Ash exchanging the ball. Who kept the ball? Because you picked up a fifer in his 100th test, it was very generous of you to toss it to him. But who finally kept it? He replied:
“He is very kind, very humble; and obviously, playing in his 100th Test match for India, it’s unbelievable. I’ve been with the team for like seven years; I’ve seen the ups and downs of him. It’s very lovely to have him in the dressing room and to learn a lot from him. So I thought probably he’s playing his 100th game; he deserved that. He’s a very special player. He said, ‘You can keep this one; I got 35. So you keep it.’“
