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When Kuldeep Yadav bowled chinaman for the first time, he had no idea what it was called. Left to him, he wouldnt have bowled spin, or even turned up at a cricket net. As with many Indian kids, Kuldeep found himself chasing unfulfilled dreams of the previous generation. Kuldeeps father Ram Singh, a brick-field businessman in Kanpur, had wanted his younger brother, Janardhan Singh, to succeed as a professional cricketer. Janardhan played district-level cricket, but couldnt graduate to the next level.Ramsingh was disappointed his brothers career didnt take off, but he wasnt going to accept defeat; instead, he decided to invest in his son. When Kuldeep was 11, he was sent to a cricket academy to train alongside his uncle. Kuldeep remembers being a timepass cricketer initially; he played a lot of table tennis, but it wasnt as if he wanted to make a career of it either. I was too young to decide what to do, so I just studied, played and generally had fun for about a year, he says.Kuldeeps coach Kapil Pandey, however, thought he had enough talent for serious cricket, but insisted he switch to spin bowling. Kuldeep wasnt happy about it: he idolised Wasim Akram and was obsessed with fast bowling. Even my dad isnt very tall, so my coach thought I wouldnt shoot up enough to become a fast bowler, Kuldeep says. Pandey was proved right as Kuldeep grew no taller than five feet eight inches.When Kuldeep gave spin bowling a shot, he didnt tweak the ball like a fingerspinner would and instead bowled it from the back of his hand. Kuldeep says he doesnt know why he did it, but Pandey liked what he saw. He was impressed with the way my hand opened up at the time of release. He thought I had a rare talent and I should continue bowling that way.Kuldeep is glad he heeded his coachs advice. If I had remained a fast bowler, I would have probably never got to meet Wasim sir, he says with a chuckle. When I told Wasim bhai about it [years later, at Kolkata Knight Riders], he was happy that I stuck to spin bowling.Thereon, Kuldeep never slacked off, packing in two practice sessions every day in the morning and evening. That there was no reference point - there werent any chinaman bowlers around him to emulate - wasnt a hindrance to learning. Kuldeep would try to copy the action of Ravindra Singh Chauhan, a legspinner in his academy. He would also watch videos of his idol Shane Warne and observe his action and rhythm closely. Even now, Kuldeep goes back to Warnes videos, particularly from the 2005 Ashes, whenever he feels he has a problem with his bowling.When he was 14 or 15, Kuldeep was considered too young to play for Uttar Pradeshs Under-17s. In a year or two, Kuldeep was a regular in the India under-19 side, but didnt make the squad for the 2012 World Cup. Kuldeep, then only 17, wasnt perturbed; he knew his time would come. Two years later, he went on to take a hat-trick against Scotland in the Under-19 World Cup and also became the joint second-highest wicket-taker in the tournament, along with Kagiso Rabada and Namibias Bredell Wessels.In 2012, Kuldeeps first IPL experience was little more than a brief flirtation with Mumbai Indians. A more purposeful, career-defining relationship was forged with Kolkata Knight Riders, who signed him up two years later. While he didnt get a game in the 2014 IPL season, Kuldeep finished as Knight Riders second-highest wicket-taker in the Champions League T20 later that year, as the team finished runners-up. A little over a fortnight later he made his first-class debut.Kuldeep remembers making an impression on his first day at the Knight Riders camp by dismissing Gautam Gambhir in the nets. He is grateful to Gambhir for playing him in the first XI despite the presence of senior spinners such as Sunil Narine, Brad Hogg, Shakib Al Hasan and Piyush Chawla. More reassuring was how Gambhir never fretted over Kuldeep going for runs.He would just say, it doesnt matter, he scored off a good ball, Kuldeep says. When I was playing CLT20, Shoaib Malik took 18 [21] runs off me in an over. So, I went up to Gauti bhai and said I wanted to bowl from the other side because the end I was bowling from had shorter boundaries. Gauti bhai insisted I bowl from the same end. I thought to myself, yaar, yeh kya kar diya (what has he done).The game hes referring to is the semifinal against Hobart Hurricanes. It proved an important, even if chastening, lesson on second-guessing the batsmans motives. Kuldeep had started well, conceding only 10 runs in three overs and taking the wicket of Ben Dunk. The first ball of his fourth over to Malik was a dot. Then Malik smashed him for two sixes and two fours. [Malik] told me after the match I was bowling very well, and that he was reading my mind during my first three overs, Kuldeep says. He knew exactly when I would flight the ball or push it faster. When you come up against a big player, he is always one step ahead of you.A key figure in Kuldeeps development has been fellow left-arm wristspinner Hogg. Apart from teaching him how to bowl the flipper - Kuldeep admits he needs to become stronger to bowl it as well as his senior partner - Hogg has hand-held Kuldeep through match situations. During a match against Sunrisers Hyderabad in the 2016 IPL season, Kuldeep, after a tight over, was anxious to attack in the quest for wickets.With Sunrisers chasing 172, Hogg knew the batsmen themselves would be under pressure to go after the bowling, and advised Kuldeep just to keep things tight. Kuldeep duly dismissed Shikhar Dhawan in his next over.Hogg has also endeared himself to Kuldeep by being a sounding board. He has asked me to Skype him if there is any problem I want to discuss with him, Kuldeep says. Thats a big deal for a youngster when someone you look up to takes a keen interest in you.Kuldeep went through a traumatic period during the Ranji Trophy last year. While his numbers - 13 wickets from five games for Uttar Pradesh at an average of nearly 47 - were middling at best, he believes he could have done with a few more opportunities. I was struggling so much to play for my state, but I dont know why I wasnt being picked, he says. I had come back after having picked wickets playing for India A, but I would be dropped here. I felt like I was being ignored.One of the reasons he doesnt find a regular place in the UP team is the presence of Piyush Chawla as the lead spinner, especially on pitches that dont require more than one spinner. Its also possible his success in the shorter formats has led to him being typecast as a limited-overs bowler. Kuldeep, however, insists he is a classical spinner whose heart lies in the longer format.If you are a spinner, you should turn and flight the ball. I cant fire it in fast; that is beyond me, he says. I love Test cricket the best. I get a lot of enjoyment playing four-day cricket, and my bowling style suits four-day cricket because I flight the ball.Help, though, was forthcoming from two senior members of the side - Chawla and Suresh Raina. PC bhai supported me a lot, and asked me to keep working hard, he says. Raina bhai is very caring. He always calls and keeps tabs on what is happening with me. I worked very hard on my bowling during that phase. Such phases are part and parcel of life - sometimes you do well and sometimes you dont.By the time the Duleep Trophy began - a day-night affair that trialled the pink ball for the first time in Indias first-class cricket - Kuldeep was more at peace with himself and finished as the leading wicket-taker with 17 wickets in three matches. With Indias head coach Anil Kumble and then selectors Vikram Rathore and Saba Karim in attendance, Kuldeep picked up four wickets in the final. Yuvraj Singh, his captain at India Red, called him jaadugar (magician).Kuldeeps performances in the tournament didnt earn him a place in either the Test or the ODI sides against New Zealand, but they didnt go unnoticed, as he was invited to train with the Indian team. Only once before had he been part of the senior squad when he was picked for the ODI series against West Indies in 2014.When you are with the team and training with them, you feel that you are a part of the team, he says. I had some good conversations with Anil bhai this time. He spoke to me about how I should bowl when the body starts tiring and what I should do while bowling long spells. He would stand next to me while I was bowling and took very good care of me.The more I am used to bowling to batsmen like Virat [Kohli] bhai or Jinks [Ajinkya Rahane] bhai and Puji [Cheteshwar Pujara] bhai, its easier to understand where I stand and how I can improve when I go back to Ranji Trophy. They tell me whats the right pace to bowl and what variations I could bowl.Kuldeep didnt have to wait too long to put some of that wisdom into practice, as he was picked for UPs season-opener against Madhya Pradesh. But he would know from experience that getting there is only half the job done. Cheap Hydro Flask Sale . The 31-year-old Spain midfielder hasnt played since Madrid lost in the Copa del Rey final to Atletico Madrid in May due to back and foot injuries. Hydro Flask 40 Oz Cyber Monday . The 15th-ranked Canadian men lost the opening two games of their European tour: 19-15 to No. 17 Georgia and 21-20 to No. http://www.waterbottlecybermonday.com/ . While hell be dialed in to that tournament on a course he loves, you can forgive him if his eyes glance down the calendar just a bit, towards April. Swell Bottle Black Friday .Y. - Rob Manfred was promoted Monday to Major League Baseballs chief operating officer, which may make him a candidate to succeed Bud Selig as commissioner. Cheap Hydro Flask .Y. - New York City has been selected to host the NBA All-Star weekend in 2015, with the game played at Madison Square Garden and the slam dunk contest and other skills events held at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn.SAN ANTONIO -- Whats the matter with Manu? Manu Ginobili isnt scoring. His game is now careless instead of famously creative. In these NBA Finals, where LeBron James and Dwyane Wade just delivered a forceful reminder in Game 4 about stars deciding this series, the San Antonio Spurs are still waiting on one of their biggest. The impatience is starting to show. "Hes having a tough playoffs, and hasnt really found a rhythm or found his game yet," Spurs coach Gregg Popovich said Friday. "I think that hes obviously not as confident as usual, and he knows full well he hasnt performed the way he would like and the way hes used to. But its simplistic to say, What are we going to do to get him going?" Simplistic, maybe. But their prospects of winning a fifth title may hinge on just that. Ginobili scored five points in 26 minutes in a 109-93 loss Thursday night, knotting the series heading into San Antonios final home game Sunday. Hes shooting just 34 per cent against the Heat and is averaging 7.5 points, down from his 11.8 scoring average during the season. Overall, Ginobili has shot 38 per cent in the playoffs, a career worst. Only one of his last 11 tries from behind the 3-point line has connected. It got so bad in Game 4 that even the Baseline Bums, a boisterous section of Spurs die-hards in the AT&T Center where the wily Ginobili is most beloved, yelled for the Argentine to quit jacking up shots. Ginobili seems to be getting fed up, too. He looked bothered by questions about his persistent struggles after shooting 1 for 5 on Thursday night and tying his third-lowest scoring game in 21 career Finals appearances. The other time he managed just five points in the Finals? Game 2 in this same series. "Its not that Ive scored 30 a game this year," Ginobili said. "Im surprised. I wish I could score more. But its not happening. I got to try to do other stuff. Ive got to move the ball. If thhe shot is not falling, Ive got to be sharp feeding the bigs and finding the shooters.dddddddddddd I dont have to force the issue. Thats not what I do. Thats not what Im asked to do." Putting a finger on what Ginobili does has always been tough to define - a quality that has made him one of the NBAs most entertaining players the last 11 years. At his most dazzling hes a fearless attacker, game-winning marksman, uncanny improviser and a master of falling-down shots that defy belief. In Game 1, Ginobili perfectly bounce passed to Tony Parker between the legs of Miamis Norris Cole - while Cole had his back turned and running. The brilliant delivery was vintage Ginobili, but his performance the rest of this series has been otherwise forgettable. Heat coach Erik Spoelstra on Friday downplayed the effect the Heat defence has had on Ginobili, saying that it occasionally has come down to him missing some shots he normally makes. But Ginobilis game has never been predicated on jump shots, and Spoelstra and the Heat are wary of him turning it on. "Weve always looked at him very similar to our guy, to Dwyane," Spoelstra said. "And what makes him probably most dangerous is the unpredictability, his ability to be aggressive and do things on the court that arent necessarily scripted. Thats where hes most dangerous. Ginobili turns 36 in July. He will be a free agent this summer and has said hes not ready to retire. Three years ago, when Ginobili was playing at the end of his last contract and plagued by injuries, Popovich and Spurs general manager R.C. Buford didnt seal a new deal until Ginobili ripped through an exceptional two months late in 2010 that showed he still had it. Now two wins from a championship, the Spurs need Ginobili to prove that again. "Hes going to get himself going or he wont," Popovich said. "He knows that hes got to play better for us to be successful." Cheap Jeys ' ' '