Former bowling coach Bharat Arun remembers a moment that then India head coach Ravi Shastri had with Kuldeep Yadav about his fitness.

This puppy fat you have na has to be melted away boss!

I can't think of a single reason with improved fitness that you won't become a world-class Test bowler,' Arun paraphrases Shastri's words from memory. Arun brings it up in the context of the 'insane hard work' that Kuldeep has put in since late 2021 from the moment he was sidelined due to a serious leg injury that needed surgery. 'It seems rather silly to say this but that injury, I think, gave him no option but to get fitter. He had to do all the hard rehab work, shed himself of that puppy fat, to continue his dream of playing cricket. And he has obviously worked a lot on his bowling - that energy through the crease is a standout feature now. It allows him to increase pace without sacrificing turn, loop, drift,' Arun tells The Indian Express. It's also the reason why India will now have to play Kuldeep ahead of Axar Patel in any Test they play. Especially, in the context of the pitches they are serving - not rank turners- where Axar the bowler is almost nullified, or at least his effectiveness vastly reduced. On such tracks, the comparison can be simplistically reduced to a battle between their stock balls. Axar's landing on a length and skidding on on a good day with a hint of turn has no chance against Kuldeep's wristy loopy offering with a bit more turn that has the potential to beat batsmen in flight, with dip and turn. Aligned with it, are his other variations. Axar was one of India's most valuable batsmen in the home Test series against Australia, but of late, Kuldeep the batsman has fought doggedly, putting a big price on his wicket.