Former Indian batter Robin Uthappa reckons India might regret not giving Yuzvendra Chahal even one match in the entire T20 World Cup. India was once again knocked out from the T20 World Cup after they were beaten by 10 wickets by England in the semi-final at Adelaide Oval.
Chahal was not given a single game by the team despite performing consistently in the recent times. Ravichandran Ashwin and Axar Patel were preferred ahead of Chahal in the starting XI but both the finger spinners could not deliver the goods.
It is well known that both Ashwin and Patel are known to be defensive in the T20I format whereas Chahal, being a wrist spinner, hunts for wickets. Leg-spinners like Shadab Khan and Adil Rashid were able to deliver for Pakistan and England respectively and played a key role in the success of their team.
Chahal has taken 85 wickets in 69 T20I matches at an average of 24.65 and an economy rate of 8.12. However, he didn’t get any opportunities in the playing XI, which was surprising as he could have made a difference in the middle overs.
Robin Uthappa said while talking to Sportskeeda, “After everything gets over, we say that in hindsight this should have been done or that would have been better. This is why I believe that you need luck, especially in such big tournaments.”
Uthappa continued: “Such decisions play a huge role. India might regret not giving Chahal even one match in the entire tournament. He could have at least been given a couple of opportunities to see what he can produce in those conditions.”
On the other hand, former Indian batter Mohammad Kaif told the same publication that players are helpless when they don’t get chances to prove their mettle.
Kaif said, “Players are helpless in the scenario where they do not get any matches, they will bowl in the nets and train at the gym as the routine dictates.”
Chahal will be seen in action in the T20I series against New Zealand.
