The story of Kuldeep Yadav is one to savour - hard work, perseverance and dedication, all mixed into one. While he was a prodigal talent during his youth days in Kanpur, his talent was never given the credit until he made the ranks above on the Indian domestic circuit. 

Since then, his career has seen a massive uplift, with him even meeting his idol growing up, Shane Warne. During the meeting with Warne, the left-arm unorthodox bowler learnt a lot, including bowling in tough conditions. The 25-year-old recalled an incident in Australia when Warne explained to him how he could improve his bowling 

"I always wanted to be like him. When we were in Australia, he would come every morning and would give a few minutes to me. Whenever I would ask him like my arm comes down sooner or I'm landing fast, he would come up and explain and say give it more power, hold it tighter and try. So there were such things that he helped me with," he said on Cricbuzz's Spicy Pitch.

The 25-year-old from Kanpur revealed how he constantly underestimated himself during his early days when he was still playing age cricket. Yadav remembers numerous times when he always felt that he was not ready to represent the country, which halted his progress. Now, however, he feels that he should have donned the Indian colours much earlier than he eventually did.

"After I played the Under 19 World Cup, I was very happy that I would play the Ranji Trophy from UP. So, all through my life, I have underestimated myself. Too much! Sometimes I felt, I was not ready, even for India. But now, I feel I should've played for India much earlier," confesses Kuldeep.