Umesh Yadav has had the tendency to stray his line and concede runs in ODI and T20 cricket. He has been out of the limited-overs squad as he last played a 50-over match for India in 2018.
Umesh Yadav is one of the premier pacers and a regular for India in Tests. But that hasn’t propelled him to have a successful career in the shorter formats.
Umesh Yadav Is Experienced Only In Terms Of Tests But Not In The Shorter Formats: Saba Karim
The trend was followed by IPL franchises in IPL 2021 who have also started giving the Indian pacer a cold shoulder. Umesh Yadav was finally sold to Delhi Capitals for his base price of ₹1 crore while several foreign players went for huge sums at the Auction. The Indian pacer has 119 scalps from 121 IPL games averaging 30.07 at a high economy rate of 8.51.
Former India wicket-keeper Saba Karim talked about the reason behind Umesh Yadav not getting more than base price and why the IPL franchises opt to go for overseas recruits. While Kyle Jamieson was bought by Royal Challengers Bangalore for INR 15 crore, Jhye Richardson went to Punjab Kings for INR 14 crore.
“Umesh Yadav may be experienced but only in terms of Test matches, not in the shorter formats. Look at the Indian side’s composition in the shorter formats, you don’t see Umesh Yadav figuring regularly in the playing XI or even in the squad. It obviously means that Umesh Yadav’s track record in the shorter formats hasn’t been very good. All the IPL franchises have done their homework and that is why they have shown more faith in overseas speedsters than any exciting domestic prospect or even an experienced Indian pacer like Umesh Yadav,” Karim told Sportskeeda.
“Out and out speedsters, most of the franchises have opted for overseas professionals [sic]. All these IPL franchises, their talent scouts have looked around, they have watched some of these T20s all over the world, including the Big Bash. From there, a lot of these overseas professionals have been bought by the IPL franchises.”
Overall, Umesh Yadav has been part of Delhi Capitals (Delhi Daredevils then), Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR), and Royal Challengers Bangalore in the cash-rich T20 tournament. He made his debut against Chennai Super Kings (CSK) in 2010. In the 2020 edition, he played for RCB but wasn’t good enough for the Virat Kohli-led side to retain him for the 2021 season. He returns to Delhi based franchise after representing them till 2013 after 7 long years.
Saba Karim: Franchises Shown Faith In Young Overseas Pacers Because They Have Requisite Skillset To Do Well In India
Delhi Capitals acquired World Cup 2015 winning player Steve Smith in the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2021 Auction held on Thursday in Chennai. Steve Smith was bought by the Delhi-based franchise for Rs 2.2 crore, while experienced T20 players Tom Curran and Sam Billings were bought for Rs 5.25 crore and Rs 2 crore respectively. Steve Smith scored only 311 runs averaging a modest 25.91 in 14 IPL games in IPL 2020 held at UAE for Rajasthan.
“Franchises have shown faith in these young speedsters because they feel that they have the skill set to do well even in Indian conditions. If you notice, in the past several years, most of the wickets in India, except for maybe east and one or two tracks in south, now offer good pace and bounce. Most of these franchises wanted experienced speedsters at the top, who can pick some early wickets, and make early inroads in the opposition camp.”
Fast bowler Umesh Yadav had a brilliant season with the Royal Challengers Bangalore in IPL 2018 when he picked up 20 wickets in 14 matches at an average of 20.90 but went wicketless in 2 IPL games in IPL 2020.
A total of 57 players, 22 of them overseas, were sold at the IPL 2021 auction, with seamer all-rounder Chris Morris going to Rajasthan Royals for a record INR 16.25 crore.