Has Yuzvendra Chahal discovered an anti-ageing drug that people are not aware of? In the three months that he did not play any professional game at all, has he found a jugaad that is fuelling this late resurgence in his Indian Premier League career?
It might just feel that way.
We saw a glimpse of that in Punjab’s season opener against Gujarat Titans in Mullanpur, where Chahal picked up the wickets of Shubman Gill and Jos Buttler, helping his side restrict Gujarat to a below-par total. The wickets, however, came off attacking shots that the batters mistimed and were caught in the deep. Heck, in Buttler’s case, the ball looked destined for the stands, until Xavier Bartlett plucked it out of thin air, putting a dent in Gujarat’s innings.
But Friday was different.
Playing against Chennai Super Kings at the fortress Chepauk, Yuzvendra Chahal quietly changed the course of the game with a three-over spell that will not scream from the scorecard but will linger in the memory. He did not bowl his full quota, picked up just one wicket, and conceded 21 runs. And yet, he is India Today’s Play of the Day, where we look beyond the Player of the Match award and zoom in on the exact phase that tilted the game.
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Today, from Chennai vs Punjab, it is Chahal’s three overs, a spell from hell if you were wearing yellow, that turned the game in Punjab’s favour.
Before getting into that, a quick look at how the match unfolded.
IPL: CSK vs PBKS
On Friday, April 3, Punjab Kings chased down 210 runs against Chennai Super Kings in just 18.4 overs. Opener Priyansh Arya and captain Shreyas Iyer led the charge, guiding Punjab to their second straight win of the season. Priyansh was awarded Player of the Match for his blistering 39 off 11 balls in the powerplay, setting the tone for the chase.
Earlier, Chennai Super Kings huffed and puffed after being sent in to bat. Ayush Mhatre’s 73 off 43 balls, along with handy contributions from Shivam Dube and Sarfaraz Khan, helped them post what seemed like a competitive total. It was a score that CSK captain Ruturaj Gaikwad believed should have been enough.
Mhatre was particularly impressive, taking the attack to the opposition after an early setback. He struck 6 fours and 5 sixes, bringing up his fifty in just 29 balls.
In fact, Mhatre almost single-handedly revived CSK’s innings after a shaky start, pushing them to 57/1 at the end of the powerplay, nearly touching 10 runs per over.
YUZVENDRA CHAHAL’S NIGHT AT CHEPAUK
Before Yuzvendra Chahal came on to bowl, Ayush Mhatre was in full flow. He had just taken Marco Jansen apart for two massive sixes in the 7th over, ensuring that CSK carried their momentum beyond the powerplay.
Enter Chahal.
The wily spinner understood the need to slow things down and did something that sounds simple but takes courage, he gave the ball air. He slowed it up, tossed it above the eyeline, and let the surface do the work. The grip off the pitch immediately brought uncertainty into the minds of both Mhatre and Ruturaj Gaikwad in the 8th over.
The batters adjusted, or at least tried to. They chose caution, refusing to take risks just after the powerplay. For the first time since the opening over of the match, CSK were kept to six runs or fewer in an over.
Chahal had done his job. Almost.
From the other end, Mhatre continued his charge, picking up 17 runs off a Marcus Stoinis over, trying to wrest back control.
Once again, the onus fell on Chahal to pull things back.
He responded with control and clarity. Chahal drifted the ball in, turned it away, and forced Mhatre into a decision. Having played him watchfully in the previous over, the youngster went for the sweep. The result, a top edge towards short fine leg. Vijaykumar Vyshak, perhaps surprised by the mishit, was slow to react and ended up fumbling what should have been a straightforward catch.
Chahal, though, was not deterred. He did not rethink his plan. He understood that the only way to eke out a wicket was to double down on what he was trying to do, without worrying that predictability might lead to him getting hit for runs.
He kept going, same loop, same deception, same nagging doubt planted in the minds of the batters.
And doubt, in cricket, is everything.
It showed in his next over, his third and final one of the night. Ruturaj Gaikwad, even when gifted a drag-down on the leg side, could not clear the boundary. The shot lacked conviction, the execution lacked timing, and the result was a catch to Nehal Wadhera at deep square.
The things doubt makes batters do.
Ruturaj walked back after a stuttering innings, undone by spin, traditionally his strength.
Now consider this. When Chahal began his spell, Mhatre had raced to his fifty in just 29 balls. By the time Chahal was done, Mhatre had crawled to 69 off 41 deliveries. Just 17 runs off the next 12 balls, a phase that completely sucked the life out of what was shaping into a dominant innings.
That slowdown proved decisive.
Forced to make up for lost momentum, Mhatre perished in the very next over, the 13th, off Vyshak. In a neat twist of fate, the catch was completed by Chahal himself, completing a sequence that he had set in motion two overs earlier.
Mhatre’s wicket was crucial. At one stage, he looked set for a century and could easily have added another 30 runs to CSK’s total. Chahal’s three overs ensured that never happened.
And in a game where Punjab eventually chased down the target with overs to spare, that quiet, calculated choke in the middle overs made all the difference.
On Friday night in Chepauk, Yuzvendra Chahal was at his chatur, chalak best, outthinking, outfoxing and quietly choking the life out of CSK.
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