Chennai (Tamil Nadu) [India], April 4 : Former Indian spin bowler Harbhajan Singh touched upon Yuzvendra Chahal's spell against Chennai Super Kings (CSK) in the seventh fixture of the Indian Premier League (IPL).
Chahal's bowling figures of 1/21 in 3 overs proved crucial in Punjab Kings five-wicket win over CSK on Friday. In a match where every bowler conceded runs at an economy rate of over 9, Chahal's economy stood impressively at just 7.
Speaking on JioStar, Harbhajan explained that Chahal succeeds because he gives the ball more flight and spin, creating dip and turn that deceives batters into mistimed shots. He described this as true "classical spin bowling," a rare skill, adding that only a few bowlers like Chahal and Kuldeep Yadav still practice it.
"If you look at it from the side angle, when the ball leaves a spinner's hand, it should come out from the top of the hand and drop down to the bottom, almost forming a half-moon shape. Yuzvendra Chahal isn't very tall either, so he uses that to his advantage by giving the ball more air and flight. The more you flight the ball, the more revs you get. And the more revolutions there are, the more the ball will dip and turn. Because of this, the batter feels like the ball is coming towards them, but it actually isn't; the ball is still far from them. That's why when you go for a big shot, you end up hitting high but not long, because you are early into the shot," Harbhajan Singh said.
"This is how a proper spinner bowls. This is classical spin bowling, which is a dying art, almost like dinosaurs; there are only a few left now. There's Kuldeep, there's Chahal. The rest say they are spinners, but like everyone else, they don't bowl like one, they just keep bowling fast," Harbhajan added.
Chahal is the highest wicket-taker in the history of the Indian Premier League, with 224 wickets in 176 matches at an average of 22.68.