Yuzvendra Chahal said that he could use his experience in red-ball cricket in white ball matches for India. (Source: PTI)
Yuzvendra Chahal admitted that adjusting to red-ball cricket after a long absence from the longer formats “does take a bit of time.” Chahal is currently part of the India A team playing a touring South Africa A side and has thus far managed just four wickets in two “Tests”
“It does take a bit of time to adjust because the batsmen don’t have a lot of pressure [in red-ball cricket],” Chahal is quoted as saying by ESPNCricinfo.
“In ODIs and T20s, if the run-rate is high, then the batsman tries to go after you and get out. But in the longer form you need to get them out with your skills. You need to use your brain more. So it’s quite different because you need to bowl 30-35 overs here, but only four overs in T20s,” he said.
Chahal said that he could use hsi experience in this series for future ODI and T20 matches and stated that his absence from long-format cricket was more out of necessity than any dislike for the latter.
“After 2016 [his last first-class appearance for Haryana in the Ranji Trophy], I have continuously played white-ball cricket, so I didn’t get time,” Chahal says. “But if you bowl with the red ball, your bowling will improve and your mind will get sharper. You need to adjust on these kinds of surfaces where spinners don’t have much help, so you use your idea – whether bowling outside off stump or changing the field – so in this format you need more planning. We can implement these learnings in ODIs and T20s too,” he said.
“Because there’s a difference between red and white, so the selectors sent me here. A two-year gap is a long time, and I need to stay fit for longer periods, because you need to bowl 30-35 overs a day. It’s difficult to bowl a good ball but to take a wicket off it, that’s even more difficult. The more I play this format, the more I’ll mature.”
Chahal said that he is not thinking about breaking into the Test squad in the ongoing England tour. “Not even thinking about the squads for the last two Tests in England,” Chahal said. “My experience of England was very good because it was my first tour, but my focus is on this game. If my name doesn’t come, then my mind will be on the Asia Cup. So I’ll shift my focus on that series after this game.”