Xtra Time Web Desk: Deepak Chahar’s highest score in One Day International’s before Tuesday night’s cliffhanger against Sri Lanka was a miserly 12 runs. Very few had an idea about his credentials with the bat except for one man. It was a masterstroke from India coach Rahul Dravid to send Deepak to bat ahead of a experienced Bhuvneshwar Kumar with India still needing 84 runs to win and a defeat looked inevitable. As it turned out Chahar played one of the best knocks of his career so far to guide the team home with 5 balls to spare. It was fitting he scored the winning boundary.
“He played with India A under Rahul Dravid before and he was good in those series. So, he knew Deepak can bat and hit a few balls well. It was Rahul Dravid’s call to send him ahead of me and the way he batted he proved the call right. He has batted well in Ranji Trophy few times so it wasn’t a tough call but it’s good to see the way he scored those runs,” Bhuvneshwar Kumar said in the post-match press conference.
Deepak Chahar did score half-centuries in domestic cricket, but those came against opponents like Odisha and Bihar. His highest score in IPL was 39 and 12 in ODIs. Not many trusted Chahar’s abilities with the bat except Rahul Dravid who knew his potential having seen him bat during India A tours. As it turned out, Dravid has unearthed a potential bowling all rounder for Team India.