Yuzvendra Chahal has enjoyed a stellar run so far in his maiden season with the Rajasthan Royals, and on Saturday, the leg-spinner dished out another sparkling performance.
The leggie registered figures of 3/28 against Punjab Kings in the afternoon fixture of the Saturday double-header, his haul helping RR keep Punjab below the 200-mark.
Chahal, who is the current Purple Cap holder, thus went past the 20-wicket mark this season, taking his tally to 22, and added a new feather to his cap in the process.
He became only the second bowler in the history of the tournament to collect 20 or more wickets in a single season on four different occasions. The only other individual to achieve this feat is former Sri Lanka and Mumbai Indians seamer Lasith Malinga, who currently serves as Rajasthan’s fast bowling coach.
Yuzvendra Chahal was the standout bowler for the Rajasthan Royals against Punjab Kings with a haul of 3/28. Sportzpics
Malinga had crossed the 20-wicket haul in three consecutive seasons — 2011 (28), 2012 (22) and 2013 (20) — before collecting 24 wickets in the 2015 season. Two of those performances came in title-winning seasons (2013 and 2015).
Chahal, on the other hand, had achieved the feat in two consecutive seasons — 2015 (23) and 2016 (21) — and then four years later in 2020 (21), all of which were achieved for the Royal Challengers Bangalore.
The Haryana native went past West Indies and Kolkata Knight Riders bowling all-rounder Sunil Narine, who had gone past 20 wickets in three consecutive seasons between 2012 and 2014 for the KKR — two of those performances leading to a title for the side that was captained by Gautam Gambhir back then.
Chahal, who had been overlooked for India’s underwhelming T20 World Cup campaign last year, has made a strong statement with a series of consistent performances this season in addition to an impressive display in Team India’s home white-ball games earlier this year.
Chahal has four wickets more than fellow India spinner Kuldeep Yadav and South African speedster Kagiso Rabada, both of whom have collected 18 wickets and occupy the second and third spots in the Purple Cap list.
The RR leggie is also one of the two bowlers to have collected a five-wicket haul this season, and is so far the only one with a hat-trick, achieving the feat in a remarkable performance against the Kolkata Knight Riders.
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