Umesh Yadav

Popularly known as ‘strongman’ in the Indian cricket team because of his super-fast deliveries, Umesh Yadav has constantly troubled batsmen with his lethal deliveries. 

Son of a coal miner, Yadav's initial journey has not been easy. His father was the lone bread earner of the family and his siblings could not even continue their studies due to financial crunch. He even played several local prize money tournaments for earning.

Started playing with tennis and rubber ball, Yadav didn't hold the seasoned ball until he was 20. It took nearly two years for him to get used to the seasoned ball.

He earned himself a Ranji debut in 2008 against Madhya Pradesh where he took 20 wickets at an average of 14.60. It was his rapid pace with swing that caught the eyes of selectors. In May 2010, he was called for India’s squad of T20 and ODI series. In the player auction of IPL 2011, he was bought by the Delhi Daredevils for a massive $750,000. However, he managed just two wickets from seven matches, at an economy rate of 9 per over.

Yadav had a disappointing start to his ODI career. Selected in the series against Zimbabwe, he made his debut on May 28, 2010 and went wicketless against a team ranked 10th by ICC. India lost the match while defending 285 in which Yadav leaked 48 runs in eight overs. In the three-match series, Yadav could only manage a single wicket and then was sidelined after the series.

Yadav returned to the national setup after a year against England for a five-match ODI series. Managing to pick 4 wickets in the first three ODIs, he was dropped again due to an injury to his left hand. Yadav made his Test debut against an inexperienced West Indies side in November 2011 and picked up 9 wickets in two matches, the most amongst Indian pacers. He was part of the 2011-12 Australia tour. He bowled a delivery at 152.5 kmph which is the highest bowling speed till now by an Indian. 

Yadav returned to international cricket in the 2013 ICC Champions Trophy and did reasonably well. Under the guidance of then skipper MS Dhoni, he improved his direction and control a lot which landed him another ticket to the 2015 ICC Cricket World Cup. He turned out to be a revelation in the prestigious tournament rattling 18 wickets and finished as the third-highest wicket-taker in the 2015 ICC World Cup. 

In the second Test of the West Indies tour of India, Yadav took his maiden ten-wicket haul in Test cricket, with career-best match figures of 10/133. Yadav was adjudged Player of the Match in that test. On the back of some amazing red-ball dominance, he was added to the 2017 ICC Champions Trophy side but played just two matches.

After being the main man for KKR’s bowling lineup, he was released before 2018 IPL and was purchased by RCB for INR 4.2 crore. He instantly proved his supremacy, bagging 20 wickets in his first season for RCB, and was retained for the upcoming seasons. In the subsequent seasons, Yadav’s form took a dip and he managed just 8 wickets in 13 games across two IPL seasons. Ultimately he was released by the IPL giants ahead of the 2021 IPL. Delhi Capitals snapped the pacer for his base price of INR 1 crore for their 2021 plans.

With the emergence of Jasprit Bumrah and Bhuvneshwar Kumar, he has missed out on white-ball cricket after the 2015 World Cup. He though is still a favoured option when it comes to Test Cricket. His weakness of bowling at the death remains a flaw to his raw pace.

(As of March 2021)