Ahead of the all-important series against South Africa, India A captain Shreyas Iyer is showing a lot of faith in the class and ability of Yuzvendra Chahal's wrist-spin. Iyer has faith in Chahal, even though the affable bowler is making a return to red-ball cricket after a while. 

Chahal last played a first-class game in December 2016, but Indian Cricket seems to be very interested in seeing whether Chahal can carry forward his limited overs prowess into the Test match game. 

Talking about Chahal's inclusion for the 2-match unofficial Test series, Iyer said, "He (Chahal) will be playing red-ball cricket after a long time. Having a leg-spinner in the team is always an advantage, especially on these tracks and also they can get wickets at any moment of time because you get lot of turn on this pitch,"

"It is going to be a great exposure for him as well because he carries lot of experience being a senior player. Also, he has played in different conditions. He can play a major role if he backs himself."

 Iyer, who himself is playing red-ball cricket after a gap of eight months and is looking forward to the challenge, said, "I played my last match in December. My approach to red-ball has always been positive. I am very flamboyant in terms of my shot making and I always back myself. I always think positive about my batting. With regards to getting selected in the national team, it is not in my hands . I will do my job. That is to keep performing,"

Having successfully led India A during the recent tour of England, Iyer believes that captaincy has been very good for him and his game. He added, "The transition period has been really great after being appointed captain. It as changed me mentally and I am also planning my innings accordingly. So you tend to take lot of responsibility and set an example for your team," 

Praising head coach Rahul Dravid for his inputs, Iyer further added, "We got two good sessions here. It wasn't difficult to bat on it. To be honest, the wicket had lot of cracks in it. They were not easy to bat on. Batting in such conditions will make us positive when we play on the centre pitch because it will be considerably more better than what we batted on, We have a great team. They played in England. All batsmen and players are in a good frame of mind. We will try to give our best shot. We haven't seen their players and therefore it is going to a be a great tour for us,"

(Inputs from PTI)