My Diary 2024: Kuldeep Yadav – ‘On the eve of T20 World Cup final, I imagined the trophy was next to me. Next day, it happened’ | Cricket News

As a hectic year of sports gallops to the finish line, India’s top athletes pause and reflect; tell the stories of their podium highs, battered bodies and shattered dreams. In a special series, some look back with fondness, a few others with regrets. But all with the hope – and wish – of a better 2025.
We have a tradition of sorts in the dressing room that we follow during the first team meeting before a major tournament where every member of the squad has to give a speech. We followed that routine at the T20 World Cup as well.
When my turn came, I got emotional. The disappointment of losing in the final of the ODI World Cup in 2023 hadn’t subsided and I told my teammates that I hoped that this time, we would return home with the trophy. It was a sentiment many in the room shared.
For many outside our close circle, we might not have been favourites to win the T20 World Cup. We were aware that people were saying that India won’t win, citing our previous record. But within the group, we were desperate to go all the way because the defeat in the 2023 World Cup final against Australia still hurt.
(R-L), India’s captain Rohit Sharma and teammates Suryakumar Yadav, Kuldeep Yadav and Mohd Siraj stand next to the winners’ trophy after winning against South Africa in the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup final cricket match at Kensington Oval in Bridgetown, Barbados, Saturday. (AP)
Heading into the T20 World Cup, we wanted to rectify that and I was confident we could. In fact, I remember that on the eve of the final against South Africa, I was seated in the dressing room and imagined that the World Cup trophy was next to me. I even told this to some of my teammates. And guess what, it happened the next day!
Before the final, everyone in the team was relaxed. We’d had a good run until that point — we had reached the decider beating the likes of Australia and England. So, confidence was high and no one was over-thinking. We had a very normal practice session on the morning of the game.
It was a great final but when, at a crucial juncture, when Hardik Pandya got Heinrich Klaasen’s wicket and when we got Marco Jansen, I knew we were closer to the title as it was difficult to score 20 runs in 12 balls. South Africa didn’t have batsmen left and when Suryakumar Yadav took ‘that’ stunning catch to dismiss David Miller, we knew the Cup was coming home.
We had a long night of celebration after the win. Rohit bhai was screaming at everyone to come down and ordered that no one would leave the party. Everyone around me had smiling faces, enjoying themselves to their fullest. Be it Rahul (Dravid) sir, Jay (Shah) bhai… no one was allowed to leave the room as Rohit bhai told us that such nights do not come often in a player’s life.
India’s Kuldeep Yadav, center without cap, celebrates with teammates after the dismissal of England’s Harry Brook during the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup second semifinal cricket match between England and India at the Guyana National Stadium in Providence, Guyana. (AP)
The magnitude of our achievement didn’t sink in straight away because when we reached the team hotel, it was dead silent. A cyclone was about to hit Barbados, which delayed our departure and we could leave only when a special flight was arranged.
The flight to Delhi was 16 hours long. I spent a lot of time replying to the 800 or so WhatsApp messages that I’d received, hoping that my ‘thanks’ would be delivered when we touched down in Delhi.
Upon reaching India, we went to meet Prime Miner Narendra Modiji and later, we flew to Mumbai where we were greeted sheer madness.
Only one member from our squad had been a part of such a bus ride before — it was Rohit bhai, back in 2007. Our parade was shorter than the one back then but I had never seen such a big crowd at one place before. We are used to seeing huge crowds at the stadiums but this was on another level.
India’s Kuldeep Yadav, second right, celebrates with teammates after the dismissal of Afghanan’s Gulbadin Naib during the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup cricket match between Afghanan and India at Kensington Oval in Bridgetown, Barbados, Thursday, June 20, 2024. (AP Photo/Ricardo Mazalan)
On a normal day, the ride from Nariman Point to Wankhede — a mere 500 metres — takes approximately five minutes. That day, it took us more than three hours. I remember the line Mahi bhai once said, “Mumbai doesn’t stop for anyone.” Well, that day, the city stopped for us.
People blocked the roads and climbed on trees. It was special, I still have videos from that day. Wherever we saw, people were cheering for us; going mad, screaming and dancing. It was then each of us realised we had done something special.
There’s no greater joy than to be a part of a World Cup-winning team and it was a moment when it dawned upon us that stats don’t matter when you represent your country; winning trophies does.
Years later, when someone searches my name on the web, it will always show that I was a part of the team that won the ICC T20 World Cup. Looking back, it looks as if we achieved it easily but trust me, winning a Trophy is never easy. Remember Ahmedabad 2023?
When I returned to Kanpur, my hometown, the streets there too were crowded. Thousands gathered to welcome me and there were hundreds more waiting at home. I remember meeting people till 1 in the night.
There were some bizarre moments too. Everyone kept asking me, ‘Now that you have won the World Cup, when are you getting married?’ To that, I had no answer! But a photographer friend made an album that captured the entire World Cup journey. It has a special place at home.
— As told to Devendra Pandey
Looking forward to 2025
2024 was a mixed year for Kuldeep Yadav. After a stellar show in the Test series against England, because of team balance he featured only in 5 matches at the T20 World Cup. And more importantly missed out on the entire home Tests against Bangladesh and New Zealand before missing the tour of Australia. Now with R Ashwin retiring and Ravindra Jadeja too in the November of his career, Kuldeep now has the opportunity to take over the lead mantle which he has long wished for. Practising a tough art, he has the guile and variations to trouble batsmen across all conditions and as India enters a transition period, the left-arm wr-spinner will have a huge role to play across all formats. He now seems ready to take India’s proud spin legacy forward.

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