Left-arm pacer Yash Dayal‘s form was one of the biggest positives for the Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) in a rather disappointing Indian Premier League (IPL) season for the franchise earlier this year. Trolled and ridiculed when he was first signed by RCB, the Prayagraj born pacer helped the team qualify for the playoffs, in what was a huge turnaround for the team after losing seven of their first eight games. In a virtual knockout game against CSK, RCB needed to win the contest by at least 18 runs to make it to the playoffs.
As Dayal bowled the first ball of the final over, CSK great MS Dhoni hammered a six, putting the rookie pacer under extreme pressure.
But, Dayal got rid of Dhoni on the very next ball to take the game away from CSK. However, Dayal recently revealed that dismissed Dhoni remains a bitter-sweet moment.
Speaking Jatin Sapru on his YouTube channel, the 26-year-old said he felt bad after dismissing him as it could be the last time Dhoni played in the IPL.
“I felt bad after dismissing him. Because I don’t know or care what people say but the frustration with which he left the ground, it was like you don’t know whether he will return or not. Will we ever see him again on the ground. It was a moment where a lot of things were going through my head. I got a breather, a bit of relief,” told Dayal
“With 11 runs needed off 4, I was like why I am even looking at the scoreboard. I shouldn’t. I should just focus on my bowling. Shardul bhai was on strike. Virat bhai said, ‘don’t give pace, nor bowl right onto his bat’. I told him right now it’s like peanut butter falling from top. Anywhere I want to bowl, I will I have so much confidence,” he added.
Dayal’s recent performances have also earned him a maiden Test call-up for the two-match Test series against Bangladesh.
