Sanjay Manjrekar showers praise on Yuzvendra Chahal

Test batsman-turned-commentator Sanjay Manjrekar rates wrist spinner Yuzvendra Chahal very highly in terms of his confidence level while bowling in the shorter version of the game. Manjrekar who covers most of the Indian cricket from the commentary box has seen the leg-spinner from close quarters from being handed sporadic opportunities to becoming the lead bowler in the attack.

Chahal has taken 21 wickets in 14 ODIs at an average of 27.19, and 18 wickets off 12 T20Is at 18.83. His best figures of 6/25 came in the win over England in the third T20I in February. From the limited-overs leg of Sri Lanka tour, he has been a part of the Indian team and made each of it count.

Speaking on the sidelines of the book launch of Anindya Dutta’s Spell-binding Spells yesterday, Manjrekar said: “When I watch Chahal what strikes me about him, is that he’s a wily character. He must weigh around 42 kg I think, but he has got a massive heart and great courage. I’ve never seen a bowler in a T20 game, on a flat pitch, having the courage to bowl the ball right there in the zone where the batsman can loft it for a six. But he does that. He thinks about how he can get his wicket; he backs himself.”

Praise for the best death-bowling duo

The former Mumbai stalwart was speaking at the launch of the book in presence of former India batsman Lalchand Rajput and Padmakar Shivalakar. He also praised two of the best death over bowlers in the world, the duo of Jasprit Bumrah and Bhuvneshwar Kumar, who have been keys to success for India’s dominating wins across multiple formats.

“We have game-changers like (Jasprit) Bumrah, Bhuvneshwar Kumar who are winning Man-of-the-Match or Man-of-the-Series awards. That’s a nice trend, a different trend, but at the end of the day it’s the fans who have to embrace who their hero is. They like batsmen more,” he added, as reported by the Deccan Chronicle.

He insisted on the need for India to come out of their “obsession with batting and produce a bowling superstar.” He said, “In India, we are a little more obsessed with batting. That is not the case with Pakistan, for example. When you look at Pakistan, superstars are mostly bowlers, starting with Imran Khan, Wasim Akram, Waqar Younis. So their bowling heroes are revered more,” the 52-year-old said.