Team Bangalore spinner, Yuzvendra Chahal, on Friday, April 9, joined the elite list of players to have played 100 matches in the Indian T20 League when he took the field in the tournament opener between Mumbai and Bangalore at the MA Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai.
Yuzvendra Chahal had made his Indian T20 League debut with Team Mumbai in 2013, but could appear only once for the record-winners across three seasons after being signed in 2011. Chahal moved to Bangalore in 2014 and has since played 99 games for the franchise.
The leggie has been one of the most consistent performers in the Indian T20 League, picking 121 wickets at an impressive economy of 7.67. He was, in fact, one of the main catalysts for his team last year when Bangalore made it to the playoffs. He picked 21 wickets in 15 matches at an economy of 7.08 last year.
A HUGE milestone for our magician tonight, completing a century of matches in the #IPL! 🥳
— Royal Challengers Bangalore (@RCBTweets) April 9, 2021
Let’s make this a night to remember, Yuzi! 😍#PlayBold #WeAreChallengers #MIvRCB #DareToDream pic.twitter.com/GguzaybrZq
Apart from his century of appearances in the Indian T20 League, the match against Mumbai is also his 200th T20 match. He made his T20I debut for the Indian cricket team in March 2016 after registering his best bowling figures (23 wickets) in the 2015 edition of the Indian T20 League.
The list of most appearances in Indian T20 League is still topped by Chennai captain MS Dhoni, who has played 204 matches since the inaugural edition in 2008. Mumbai captain Rohit Sharma sits second with 201 appearances. The likes of Dinesh Karthik (196), Virat Kohli (193) and Suresh Raina (193) complete the top-five list.
Feature image courtesy: AFP / Sajjad Hussain
