Don’t mind runs if wickets come: Chahal

CENTURION: Over the last 25 years India have toured South Africa, no bowler has taken a fivewicket haul against the hosts in One-day Internationals, leave alone a spinner taking his early steps in international cricket.

That changed on Sunday as Yuzvendra Chahal, in just his 19th ODI, captured 5/22 on a wicket that had helped pacers and was good for batting.

Chahal’s ability to focus on his strength, which is bowling slow and giving flight to tempt batsmen, made a difference. But it takes courage for a bowler to keep doing that, and Chahal and Kuldeep displayed character in plenty.

Chahal admitted bowling at the small Chinnaswamy Stadium, home to his IPL team Royal Challengers Bangalore, helped to get a hang of how to bowl in limited-overs cricket.

“Since I play in Bangalore, which is a small ground and is flat like these grounds, I have to play to my strength and not think about what the batsman is going to do. If I think about the batsman, then I’ll struggle.

“My strength is to go for wickets by giving flight and bowling slow. I don’t bowl fast as on these kind of wickets you can go for runs by bowling quicker, especially against the big-hitters,” he said after being declared Man-ofthe-match.

“We (him and Kuldeep) are in the team to take wickets in the middle overs. We don’t mind going for 60-65 runs in 10 overs as long as we get wickets. If you take wickets, only then the opposition will come under pressure.”

Chahal reiterated Kuldeep’s comments after the first game that the freedom given by skipper Virat Kohli to go for wickets and not think about runs has given him the licence to attack.

The 27-year-old came into this series on the back of two fourwicket hauls against Sri Lanka. He took 2/45 in the first game in Durban, removing Quinton de Kock and Aiden Markram to dent South African hopes of getting close to 300. Till he struck, Proteas had looked solid.

On Sunday, he again got rid of De Kock, who averages 70+ against India, and on whom the batting hinged with skipper Faf du Plessis and AB de Villiers absent. The ball that got him was at teasing length, prompting De Kock to pull. He holed out to deep midwicket.

Helped by Kuldeep’s double in the next over, Chahal tied down the Proteas before taking four more wickets, including two set batsmen – Khaya Zondo and JP Duminy – resurrecting the innings.

Chahal, who toured Zimbabwe 18 months ago, became a regular in the ODI side after India were thrashed by Pakistan in the ICC Champions Trophy final last June. R Ashwin and Ravindra Jadeja were mauled not just by Pakistan but also by Sri Lanka in the league phase in that tournament.

Since becoming a regular, Chahal has shown guile to pick wickets, getting rid of Australia’s Glenn Maxwell multiple times in a series late last year.