"I think he’s a wicket-taker" – Michael Clarke urges India to add another bowler in the attack

Australia’s World Cup-winning captain Michael Clarke has advised team India to pick Kuldeep Yadav for the second Test match against England at Edgbaston. Clarke labeled Kuldeep Yadav as a ‘wicket-taker’ and reckoned that he would have made a difference if he was part of India's bowling attack for the first Test, which India lost by five wickets. 

"Bowling-wise, I do not want to be hard on any individual, but I think they’ve got to play Kuldeep Yadav. I think it is an absolute no-brainer. I think he’s a wicket-taker and would have offered a lot more than what he saw the attack do in this Test," Clarke said on the Beyond23 Podcast.

Michael Clarke believes that it’s important to pick 20 wickets if you have to win a Test match in England. He stated that India should play their ‘number one spinner’ instead of worrying about their batting depth. 

“India have done this for a while. They care so much about extra batting or stacking the batting deep, and they are willing to risk picking the number one spinner to do that. I think to win in England, you’ve got to look to pick 20 wickets," Clarke added. 

Following India’s defeat in the first Test match of the five-match series, their bowling attack has come under scrutiny. England amassed a massive score of 465. In their second essay, the hosts comfortably chased down a 371-run total with five wickets in hand.

Jasprit Bumrah picked a five-wicket haul in the first innings but couldn’t manage to pick a wicket during England’s second innings. His compatriot Mohammed Siraj could pick up only two wickets in the entire match. India’s spin bowling all-rounder Ravindra Jadeja has received severe criticism for a sub-par bowling performance. 

“I thought Jadeja bowled a bit straight”: Michael Clarke 

Clarke pointed out that Ravindra Jadeja couldn't land the bowl in the rough, especially against the left-handers as he bowled a bit straight. 

“Jadeja didn’t have the impact that I thought he might have. Particularly in the second innings, I thought there was a lot of rough to the left-hander. I thought he bowled a little bit straight," Clarke added.

Ravindra Jadeja bowled 23 overs in the first innings, giving away 68 runs without a wicket to his name. In the second innings, he managed to pick a wicket while conceding 104 runs in 24 overs.