"I changed my seam position" - Yuzvendra Chahal on match-winning performance in 3rd T20I vs SA

Yuzvendra Chahal was awarded Player of the Match in the 3rd T20I (Credit: BCCI).

Yuzvendra Chahal bounced back in some style as he guided India to a 48-run win against South Africa in the third T20I on Tuesday in Visakhapatnam.

Chahal, who conceded over 10 runs per over in the last two games, returned with figures of 3/20 in his four overs at an economy rate of five.

The 31-year-old dismissed Dwaine Pretorius, Rassie van der Dussen and the hero of the last match, Heinrich Klaasen, to break South Africa's backbone.

Shedding light on what changes he made coming into the game at the post-match presentation ceremony, Yuzvendra Chahal said:

"I bowled a lot of sliders and bowled quicker in the previous matches. Today, I changed my seam position. Spinning and getting the ball to dip are my strengths. Today, I tried to get it to turn and bowl slower."

He added:

"I tried to bowl to my strengths, I focused on that. When batters try to reverse-sweep, it becomes tough for the bowlers. But now, I have a second plan and set fields accordingly."

Back to winning ways 😊
Good team work 💪🏻 - over to Rajkot now ✈️
#TeamIndia #INDvSA 🇮🇳 https://t.co/OcbFiJQlnP

Along with Chahal, Harshal Patel also made significant contributions, picking up four wickets as India successfully defended 179 runs. The hosts bowled out South Africa for 131 to win the match by 48 runs and keep the series alive.

"Coaches just told me to back my strengths" - Yuzvendra Chahal

The veteran leg-spinner, who won the Purple Cap in the recently concluded IPL 2022, failed to replicate his form in the first two matches of the series.

Chahal received severe criticism for his dismal performances but he silenced his naysayers with a superlative performance in Vizag.

My player of the match would be @yuzi_chahal. Broke the back of SA middle order. 4-0-20-3, conceded just one boundary. Super stuff 👏🏽 #INDvSA https://t.co/7mAdwebrQT

When asked about the message from the team management, he said:

"I didn't bowl well in the previous games and the coaches just told me to back my strengths."

Yuzvendra Chahal will look to keep the momentum going in the fourth game of the series on June 17 in Rajkot.