Indian leg-spinner Yuzvendra Chahal showcased his exceptional skills once again in the English County Championship, delivering a remarkable performance that led Northamptonshire to a resounding nine-wicket victory over Leicestershire.
Following his impressive 4/82 in the first innings, Chahal continued his dominance by claiming 5/134 in the second innings, resulting in a total of nine wickets for the match. With Leicestershire being bowled out for 316, Northants were left with a modest target of 137, which they successfully chased down in just 30.3 overs, with only Gus Miller (11) losing his wicket. Skipper Luke Procter (68*) and George Bartlett (54*) played pivotal roles in guiding their team to victory.
Leicestershire started the final day at 69/4 but staged an impressive recovery, thanks to Scott Currie's outstanding century (120) and Tom Scriven's gritty 48. The pair put on a dynamic 110-run partnership, with Chahal conceding a costly 19-run over during their stand. However, the leg-spinner eventually broke through, dismissing Currie for his fifth wicket, leaving Leicestershire struggling at 303/9. Their innings concluded shortly after, with Saif Zaib (2/61) removing Louis Kimber.
Chahal's exceptional performance in this match followed his stellar showing in the previous game, where he took 5/45 and 4/45 in Northants' 133-run victory over Derbyshire. This brought Chahal's total wickets during his time with the County side to 19.
Chahal joined the team immediately after the T20 World Cup and made an impactful debut with a 5-wicket haul in a List A game against Kent in the Royal One Day Cup. He then featured in 4 county championship matches, where he claimed 19 wickets, with 18 of them coming in the last 2 outings.
Looking ahead, Chahal will be aiming to secure a spot in the squad for the upcoming Bangladesh T20I series.
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