Yuzvendra Chahal entered India’s five-match T20I series against South Africa on the back of a spectacular IPL 2022, where he was the leading wicket-taker with 27 wickets in 17 matches at an economy rate of 7.75. But in Delhi and Cuttack, Chahal conceded 0/26 in 2.1 overs and 1/49 in four overs as South Africa’s batsmen, especially Heinrich Klaasen, smashed him for boundaries with ease on Sunday.
However, in Visakhapatnam, Chahal went back to his strength as a leg-spinner: varying his pace, using a flatter trajectory (sometimes wide lines) and leg-breaks by Rasi van der Dussen and Dwaine Pretorius. Received while going for the cut. , He then hits Klaasen, who was going for long, with a wide outside off-stump delivery, which the right-hander misses for extra cover.
In his allotted four overs, Chahal picked 3/20, including 11 dot balls, and won the player of the match award in India’s 48-run victory, his first in the series.
Interestingly, Chahal celebrated all his wickets in the third T20I by raising a finger with a big smile. Revealing the reason behind the soft celebrations, Chahal said that he does not want to show his aggression unless provoked by the batsman.
“Now that I am a little bit older, so long as a batsman does not ungrate, that aggression has not turned out. (I am more mature now so don’t show my aggression unless a batsman provokes me). There is a general celebration for a wicket. There are some friends who are batting at the other end, and don’t want to show aggression for no reason,” Chahal told Ruturaj Gaikwad during a light-hearted chat session.
Watch the video here:
Chahal TV is back!
Enjoy this special segment of @Ruutu1331 chatting with @yuzi_chahal after #TeamIndia’s win in Vizag. – @28anand . By
Full Interview #INDvSA | @Paytm https://t.co/nzzoyQBrPO pic.twitter.com/28DH2xK3zt – BCCI (@BCCI) June 15, 2022
Meanwhile, Chahal also revealed how he cashed in on his bowling in the last two matches.
“I bowled a lot of sliders in the last matches and bowled fast. Today, I changed my seam position. Spinning and sinking the ball is my strength. Today I tried to turn it and bowl slow. I tried to bowl For my strength, I focused on that,” Chahal said in the post-match presentation.
“When the batsmen try to reverse-sweep, it becomes difficult for the bowlers. But now I have another plan and set the field accordingly. I didn’t bowl well in the last game, the coach told me his Asked to return the strength. The ground there (Rajkot) is big.”
With this do or die win, India has opened its account in the five-match T20 series. With the series still 2-1 in favor of the visitors, the fourth T20I will be played on Friday at the Saurashtra Cricket Association Stadium, Gujarat.
