India’s sensational spinner Yuzvendra Chahal is hailed as one of the best white-ball spinners around the world. Over the last 5 years, he has emerged as one of the most important players of the Indian cricket team in the limited formats of the game. He has excelled in the phase of play in both T20I and ODI, where wicket-taking is generally considered a task.
Yuzvendra Chahal was brilliant in death overs
However, in the first ODI match against West Indies, Chahal was given a new role by Shikhar Dhawan and team management. In the absence of key players like Jasprit Bumrah, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, and Mohammed Shami, Yuzvendra Chahal was given the tough role of bowling in the slog overs.
Despite the final overs of the game being an area where spinners generally don’t bowl, Yuzvendra Chahal impressed one and all as he helped India seal a 3-run win. The 32-year-old took two wickets and conceded just 58 runs in 10 overs despite West Indies almost closing in on the target.
Chahal revealed how Rahul Dravid helped him
In the post-match press conference, Chahal credited the trust of head coach Rahul Dravid for his performance. He said: “The coach always backs me. He tells me ‘Yuzi just back your strengths, we trust you’”
He added: “I always back my strengths, I knew that the ball had become old and the ball can turn and beat the batters. So I was changing my line, bowling wider because the leg side boundary was a bit small so I thought if he hits me over cover it would be better,”
Further, Chahal also credited his performances for the Rajasthan Royals in the 2022 edition of the Indian Premier League for giving him confidence about being able to bowl in the death overs. He said:
“This change has come from the IPL, because there I was bowling the 16th, 17th and 18th over, so I got the confidence from there. My role was clear, I was told to bowl two-three overs after the 40th over. So I practice accordingly and also plan with our bowling coach,”
Meanwhile, Chahal will return back home after the completion of the three-match ODI series as he has been rested for the T20Is.
The spin wizard is currently enjoying his best run and is almost a certain player to be included in the Indian squad for the upcoming T20I world cup 2022. Chahal displayed his bowling prowess in the 2022 edition of the Indian Premier League, where he scalped 22 wickets and claimed the purple cap.
