"As a leg-spinner I have grown up watching him and it was intriguing how he would manage to confuse batsmen with his variation and flight."
When Royal Challengers Bangalore owner Vijay Mallya picked Yuzvendra Chahal at the auction ahead of the seventh edition of the Indian Premier League, not too many people took note. It was widely believed that it was a spot-filling exercise that most teams perform once they are done with picking their top 15 players. But in the team’s first match of tournament, Chahal showed his class to return with the Man of the Match award for an excellent spell against Delhi Daredevils — 1/18 in four overs.
Chahal has grown from strength to strength as the tournament has progressed. After six matches, he has seven wickets to show against his name.
But more importantly, he has an economy rate of 5.69. Not only has he shown great character in flighting the ball, but also used the zooter — invented by Shane Warne and a revamped form of the orthodox back-spinner — to good effect.
While it is still early days for the 23-year-old leg-spinner and comparing him to the one of the greatest spinner the world has ever seen in Shane Warne would be silly, there is no doubt that Chahal wants to follow in the Australian’s footsteps. If the run-up to the crease and the widening of the bowling arm at the point of delivery is a clear similarity, the enthusiasm in his voice when one asks him about it is a further giveaway.
“Yes, Warne is my idol and I want to bowl like him. As a leg-spinner I have grown up watching him and it was intriguing how he would manage to confuse batsmen with his variation and flight. Even the best in the world were in doubt when Warne hit the bowling crease. If I can bring in half of it in my game, I will feel blessed,” Chahal told MAIL TODAY. Prodded further he reveals that he is working on the zooter but it will still take some time before he can claim to have mastered it. “I have been working at it, but it is still early days. I would like to perfect it. It can be a major weapon in a leg- spinner’s repertoire,” Chahal said.
Having represented India in junior level chess, he does use his mind to spin a web around opposition batsmen. Chahal wants to credit RCB coach Daniel Vettori for his success so far.
“Spin bowling is indeed a lot like chess. You need to work on the mind of the batsmen and try to keep them guessing. But I would really like to thank Vettori for working with me at the start of the season. It helps a lot when you have someone like him putting his hand on your shoulder and showing confidence in you,” he said.
Another characteristic that Chahal seems to have imbibed from Warne is confidence. Asked if he was hoping to make it to the playing XI at the start of the season, Chahal says: “ All I wanted was one chance to prove myself and thankfully Virat bhai (Kohli) gave me that.”
Image Courtesy : BCCI
Read :