Dinesh Karthik, a veteran Indian wicketkeeper-batsman on Sunday picked leg-spinner, Yuzvendra Chahal, as an absolute certainty for Rohit Sharma-led India’s squad for the 2022 T20 World Cup slated to be played in Australia next October.
Following the culmination of the India-New Zealand bilateral T20I series, Dinesh Karthik named one bowler Yuzvendra Chahal who he believes will be a certain selection in Rohit Sharma’s India in the 2022 ICC Men’s T20 World Cup in Australia.
Dinesh Karthik: Yuzvendra Chahal Has Single-Handedly Grown In Stature In IPL And Will Be Retained By RCB Franchise
Yuzvendra Chahal was finally picked in India’s T20I squad for the third game against New Zealand in the series. It was his first appearance for India since the tour of Sri Lanka in summer earlier this year, following which he was dropped from the T20 World Cup squad where Rahul Chahar was picked ahead of him. However, following the end of the tournament, the bowler was reconsidered for the New Zealand series while Rahul Chahar was dropped.
Dinesh Karthik was all praise for the leg-spinner as he made his comeback to the XI, pointing out how he has improved as a bowler and how also being a chess player has helped him as a bowler.
“Great to see him come back. And he showed his character. The way he bowled in the second leg of IPL, he was an absolute champion. He is the top leg-spinner in India. I always rate him very high because he is also a chess player and they are always a couple of moves ahead than normal people,” said Dinesh Karthik.
“And that is always a special attribute for me. He’s got good skills, good variations and is a brave bowler and he has single-handedly grown in stature in IPL. He was bought for INR 10 lakhs by RCB in 2013, and now he is beyond what it is and that shows he has improved over time and has shown his value. I’m sure he will be retained by the franchise,” said Dinesh Karthik.
”He is also a very good bowler abroad as well, a very important attribute to keep in mind when India travel to Australia for the next T20 World Cup. I am sure he will be on that flight to Australia. And I also know Rohit trusts him a lot. Their relationship is not just strong off the field, on the field they have some good conversations,” said Dinesh Karthik.
Yuzvendra Chahal picked only four wickets in seven games in the India leg of the 2021 Indian Premier League, at an economy rate of 8.26, which saw him fall out of contention for the race to the T20 World Cup squad, to Rahul Chahar, who snared 11 wickets in as many games at an economy rate of 7.21.
However, the RCB leg spinner made an impressive comeback in the second leg, picking 14 wickets in eight matches at an economy rate of 7.06. At the same time, Rahul Chahar struggled immensely, managing only two wickets in four games at an economy rate of 7.73.
Yuzvendra Chahal Felt Down For 2-3 Days After Being Surprisingly Dropped For T20I World Cup
Earlier this month, Yuzvendra Chahal had opened up about his World Cup snub, saying that he found it difficult to come to terms with the shocking decision, but his family and fans helped him bounce back.
“I was not dropped in four years and then I got dropped for such a marquee event. I felt really bad. I was down for two-three days. But then I knew the second leg of the IPL was still around the corner. I went back to my coaches and spoke to them a lot,” Yuzvendra Chahal said.
Yuzvendra Chahal picked a wicket, that of New Zealand opener Martin Guptill, on his return to XI, conceding 26 runs in four overs as India beat New Zealand by 73 runs in the final inconsequential T20I against New Zealand and register a 3-0 whitewash at home.
Yuzvendra Chahal missed the bus to T20 World Cup 2021 owing to some inconsistent performances, both for India as well as in the first half of the Indian Premier League for Royal Challengers Bangalore. Varun Chakravarthy, Rahul Chahar, Ravichandran Ashwin, and Ravindra Jadeja were the spin options for India in the 2021 T20I World Cup.
The 35-year old spinner Ravichandran Ashwin made noteworthy outings in the opening two games against New Zealand, where he returned with figures 4-0-23-2 and 4-0-19-1, but he was rested for the final 3rd T20I as Yuzvendra Chahal was picked instead.