Yuzvendra Chahal became the first bowler to pick up 200 wickets in the history of the Indian Premier League (IPL). The leg-spinner accomplished the milestone in RR’s match against Hardik Pandya’s MI on Monday, April 22 at the Sawai Mansingh Stadium in Jaipur.
Chahal was 1 wicket short of the landmark, and he got there after picking up the wicket of Mohammad Nabi. In his very first over of the game, Chahal achieved the feat after foxing Nabi with his guile and trajectory. Nabi gave a simple caught and bowled to the bowler, who took a simple catch.
With Chahal’s wicket, MI were reduced to 52 for 4 in 7.3 overs after opting to bat first.
Chahal has been an asset for the Royals since he joined them in the 2022 edition of the T20 league. Back in 2022, the veteran won the Purple Cap when RR finished as the runners-up after losing to Gujarat in the final at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad. In 17 games, he picked up 27 wickets and showed what he is capable of.
He is currently third in the list of leading wicket-takers for RR in T20 matches after the legendary Shane Warne (67) and fast bowler Siddharth Trivedi (65). In the ongoing IPL edition, Chahal is amongst the leading wicket-takers, along with the likes of Jasprit Bumrah and Harshal Patel.
Last year, Chahal went past former West Indies all-rounder Dwayne Bravo to become the leading wicket-taker in the IPL. Chahal had a tough time when RR faced KKR at the Eden Gardens in Kolkata. He leaked 54 runs in 4 overs at an economy rate of 13.50, although he picked up the wicket of Shreyas Iyer.
The tweaker, meanwhile, is pushing hard for a place in the Indian squad for the T20 World Cup to be held later this year in the West Indies and United States of America (USA).
