After the World Cup in UK where life wasn't as easy as many thought it would be for India's wristspin duo, Yuzvendra Chahal and Kuldeep Yadav suddenly found themselves in an uncertain phase not being picked together for a single game during the limited overs series in West Indies and then dropped altogether for the T20I series at home versus South Africa.
The team management wanted to trial and test other options especially the all-rounders as batting depth instead of wicket-taking out of the blue became the main priority.
And while Chahal fought back with the T20Is versus Bangladesh, it wasn't until the selection for the upcoming series against West Indies that Kuldeep also received the nod again.
Chahal, however, on his part says being dropped has only made him more determined.
"Somethings are not in your hands and I was not thinking about that. It was a decision that the selectors made. It is something similar to when they picked me and Kuldeep, back then and they rested Ashwin and Jadeja. I guess that's how things work," he told TOI ahead of a Syed Mushtaq Ali T20 game for Haryana on Sunday (November 24).
The 29-year-old was also turning up for his state in the Vijay Hazare Trophy earlier, making good use of whatever games that came his way.
"The idea is to keep playing as much as you can. Be it for India or my state side. It is important to keep playing," he said.
Chahal realises there is more competition for places in Indian cricket today than it was perhaps for the previous generation of players.
"It is a good thing to have strong bench strength. You need to work hard because if you are not performing well there are three or four guys ready, waiting behind you," he sincerely reiterated.
The leg-spinner is also focussing on improving his batting as much as possible these days.
"Sometimes when I get the time, I do try and bat. But in the T20 format, I mostly concentrate on my bowling," he said. "Obviously, it helps if you can have a couple of big shots, especially if the team requires six runs off one ball."
India takes on West Indies in three T20Is and three ODIs starting December 6.
(Inputs from TOI)
