The India left-arm spinner has worked hard on channelling her aggression positively, and is now eyeing a T20 World Cup spot
Srinidhi Ramanujam05-May-2024Radha Yadav is a much calmer person these days. She admits she used to lose her rhythm because of her aggression earlier. But in the last year or so, the left-arm spinner has worked hard on channelling this aggression in a manner that yields good outcomes. This shift was visible in her performances in WPL 2024 which led to her earning a recall to the India squad for the tour of Bangladesh, five months ahead of the T20 World Cup.She has looked more assured than ever and has been “really enjoying” her game in Sylhet, where the five-match T20I series is being played. Three games in – all of which India have won – she has six wickets at an economy of 5 and an average of 10 to be the leading wicket-taker.”It’s quite similar to India, we get turn on this wicket – really, really enjoying [myself],” Radha said after India won the third T20I to take the series with two games to play. “We are really happy in the change room. The management has given us certain roles to follow, and we are doing it properly. Feeling happy.”Related
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Having found her way back to the India team after last playing an international game in February 2023, Radha has become a vital cog in the spin attack that also has Deepti Sharma and Shreyanka Patil – the uncapped S Asha and another left-arm spinner Saika Ishaque are waiting for their chance.In two of the three matches, Radha has provided crucial breakthroughs, including two double-wicket overs. After 1 for 19 in the opening game, Radha starred with 3 for 19 in the second. In that game, the Bangladesh batters had started with good intent, keeping the scorecard moving despite losing two wickets in the powerplay. Radha then trapped captain Nigar Sultana and Fahima Khatun lbw in successive deliveries to leave Bangladesh four down by the end of the tenth over. This triggered a collapse as Bangladesh were bowled out for 119.In the third T20I, she once again dismissed Sultana and Shorifa Khatun in the space of three balls in the penultimate over to return 2 for 22 as Bangladesh posted a below-par 117.
“I try to stay calm, and I am generally very aggressive. Because of the aggression, I used to lose my rhythm at times. So, now I try to be calm with a smiling face”Radha Yadav
Radha became a regular in the India XI after making her T20I debut in 2018. However, there was a period of lull. From the start of 2022 till the 2023 T20 World Cup in South Africa, she played a total of 27 games and took just 16 wickets at an economy rate of 6.84. At the last T20 World Cup, she picked up three wickets in four games at an average of 30.33.The lean run stretched to WPL 2023 where she played for Delhi Capitals. While Capitals were largely unaffected by her performances – or the lack of them – as they finished runners-up, Radha was one of the few players to have fallen short. She lacked control and accuracy, getting just four wickets in nine games with an economy rate of 7.20.With Patil and Ishaque then getting into the India team, Radha moved down the pecking order. Away from the limelight, Radha streamlined her approach and focussed on staying calm in the heat of a cricket match.Radha was someone who tried to bowl at the stumps, but has now started to bowl wider lines too. She is also slower through the air at times, taking pace off to deprive the batters runs. Against Bangladesh, she has bowled 39 of her 72 balls outside off stump, though the ones that got her wickets were largely at the stumps.Radha Yadav was a very different bowler in WPL 2024•BCCIThe shift was on evidence in WPL 2024, where she bowled 79 of her 150 deliveries outside off stump and picked up five out of her ten wickets when pitching the ball away from the batters. With this, Radha also ended WPL 2024 as the fourth-highest wicket-taker as Capitals again finished runners-upRadha has learnt to use her aggression positively.During WPL 2024, she had revealed in a post-match chat with Jemimah Rodrigues that she used to search for “Virat Kohli aggression videos” on YouTube to keep herself pumped up.”I try to stay calm, and I am generally very aggressive. Because of the aggression, I used to lose my rhythm at times,” she explained. “So now, I try to be calm with a smiling face.”Since the start of 2019, Radha is the second-highest wicket-taker for India in T20Is, behind Deepti. She has worked her way out of a period of lull, and the new, improved version could work very well for India come the T20 World Cup in a few months’ time.
