Chahar focused on job at hand, says T20 WC too far

Deepankar Sharda 

Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, September 19

Deepak Chahar might have performed well in the three T20I matches he has played in so far for India, but the speedster knows that his job is far from complete and he needs to make use of every opportunity that comes his way to stay in the reckoning for next year’s T20 World Cup in Australia.

“There is a whole year left for that. I play each match as if it is my last for India,” said Chahar, who made his T20I debut in July last year.

Chahar returned with figures of 2/22 in India’s seven-wicket win over South Africa at IS Bindra PCA Stadium here on Wednesday.  

“This is no more a team that plays with a limited set of players. The bench strength is equally good. There is a lot of competition and may be that is why Indian cricket is at the top. There is no guarantee that you will get your place back even if you are returning from an injury. If you want to play, you have to do well in almost every game,” the 27-year-old pointed.

In his opening spell of three overs yesterday, Chahar accounted for Reeza Hendricks, and removed a set Temba Bavuma on his return in the 18th over. The right-arm bowler though feels it is difficult to bowl upfront with just two fielders outside the 30-yard circle.  

“I don’t know how I developed it (bowling upfront), but you have to do it when you are playing for India. It is challenging with only two fielders outside the circle. But I have started thinking subconsciously that I will need to bowl three overs with two fielders outside the circle,” Chahar said after the match.

The Rajasthan cricketer further said that he was used to bowling at the death earlier and it was at Chennai Super Kings that he took up the challenge of bowling at the start of an innings.  

“It was a big responsibility to open (the bowling) for Chennai Super Kings in the IPL,” said Chahar, who has picked six wickets at an average of 11.50 in the three T20Is that he has played so far.

“Using variations is important, especially in the limited-overs format. How I bowl depends on the batsman. In the death overs, a batsman usually expects a yorker or a slower ball, but if you can also bowl a bouncer or knuckle ball, it adds a surprise element to the attack,” he added.

Chahar also praised skipper Virat Kohli for his consistency. “He is just the next level and all class. I don’t know how he manages to score these many runs and that too with such consistency,” he said.