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In a spectacular display of spin bowling, Yuzvendra Chahal left the West Indies batters bewildered as he snatched two crucial wickets in just three balls of his first over during the opening T20I of the five-match series against West Indies at the Brian Lara Stadium in Tarouba.
The match began with the Caribbean side winning the toss and electing to bat first. They started their innings with a steady partnership, but Chahal soon emerged as the game-changer for the Indian team and struck twice in the same over.
Yuzvendra Chahal traps Kyle Mayers on the first ball of his opening spell:
Chahal’s first breakthrough came on the first ball of the 4th over when he bowled an impeccably flighted delivery to Kyle Mayers. The ball was full and straight, deceiving Mayers in the process of attempting a sweep shot. The ball struck the batter’s pads in line with the off-stump, leading to a strong appeal from the Indian players. The umpire eventually raised his fingers and declared the batter out. Mayers was involved in a brief consultation with his partner at the non-striker end and decided not to waste a review before returning to the pavilion.
Although the replays after Mayer’s departure confirmed that the ball would have missed the stumps, it was too late by then.
Yuzvendra Chahal dismisses Brandon King with a similar delivery in the same over:
The third delivery of the same over then saw Chahal strike again, this time claiming the wicket of Brandon King. It was another well-pitched delivery, but this one skidded on with the arm and surprised King, who was caught in the wrong position. The ball struck him in front of the stumps, leaving the umpire with an easy decision to raise the finger.
Nevertheless, King decided to take a desperate review, hoping for an overturn, but it turned out to be in vain as Hawk Eye displayed three reds and confirmed that the ball would have crashed into the stumps. The review was wasted, and King had to walk back to the pavilion.
Here’s the video:
Chahal changes the game around in 3 balls.
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.#INDvWIAdFreeonFanCode #WIvIND pic.twitter.com/6ltlUhqH0q— FanCode (@FanCode) August 3, 2023
Chahal’s remarkable performance in that single over completely shifted the momentum in India’s favour making the road difficult for the hosts. However, with the help of Nicholas Pooran‘s quickfire 41 runs off 34 balls and Rovman Powell‘s blistering 48 off 32 deliveries, the Windies still managed to set a competitive total of 149 for the loss of six wickets in their allotted 20 overs.
Chahal finished the innings with figures of 2/24. His efforts were well complemented by Arshdeep Singh‘s economical spell of 2/31.
