Yuzvendra Chahal has played under legendary captains like MS Dhoni, Virat Kohli, and Rohit Sharma. Yet, the Indian leg-spinner credits a relatively newer leader, Sanju Samson, for the most significant bowling transformation of his career.
Yuzvendra Chahal credits Sanju Samson, not MS Dhoni, Virat Kohli, or Rohit Sharma, for his bowling transformation
Chahal has played under some of the biggest captains Indian cricket has ever seen, but when it comes to real growth in his bowling, the leg-spinner has pointed to Sanju Samson for changing his game and pushing him into a completely new role.
The leg-spinner played for India under Dhoni, who is one of the world’s greatest ever captains, as well as Rohit and Kohli. However, Chahal played most of his international and IPL cricket under Kohli at Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) and became one of the most successful spinners in the world.
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Yet, it was after his move to the Rajasthan Royals in 2022 that his bowling took a dramatic turn. Under Samson’s leadership, Chahal was trusted in situations where spinners are rarely used.
The Death-Over Transformation Under Sanju Samson
Before 2022, death overs were never part of Chahal’s role, but the former Rajasthan Royals captain saw something different in him and asked him to be ready to bowl in the toughest phase of the innings. And Chahal ended up becoming one of the lethal death bowlers in the IPL.
Yuzvendra Chahal said on the Mashable India podcast, “Sanju Samson is amazing. I share a great bond with Sanju. I became a death bowler after 2022 in IPL. Before that, I used to finish my bowling by 16-17. But when I came to Rajasthan, Sanju told me to be ready to bowl a couple of overs in death. So, I started practicing in the camp. And that year, I think, in death, in 2022, I had the most wickets. I got 14 or 15 wickets. I think my cricket improved by 2%.”
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How Samson’s faith unlocked a new side of Yuzvendra Chahal
This new responsibility helped Chahal grow as a cricketer. He feels that his overall game improved because he was challenged to do something he never believed was possible. Bowling at the death forced him to think smarter, execute better, and trust his skills under pressure.
The spinner added, “I don’t think I’ll ever be able to bowl in death. Because no one bowls a spinner in death. I think it was the first time in 2022 in IPL that a spinner started death bowling.”
A big reason behind this transformation was Sanju Samson’s calm and supportive leadership style. Samson gave Chahal complete freedom with the ball.
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Chahal signed off by saying, “I call him (Sanju) Chintu. He’s my Chintu brother. I think he’s very calm. He used to tell me, Yuzi, you don’t have to explain. You’ve played enough. I’ll tell you if there is anything. These are your 4 overs. Whatever you want to bowl, you just bowl.”
Sanju Samson is amazing. Under him i became a better bowler. Till then no captains used to bowl spinners in the death. Sanju made me a death over bowler and i had the most wickets in the death overs. He won’t disturb you and allow you to bowl as you like – Yuzi pic.twitter.com/7TgSgIwdyc
— 𝗕𝗥𝗨𝗧𝗨 (@Brutu24) January 10, 2026
66 Wickets, One Purple Cap: Yuzvendra Chahal’s Royal Takeover
Yuzvendra Chahal was a standout performer for the Rajasthan Royals. In just three seasons, he has become the most successful bowler in the franchise’s history. Across 45 IPL matches for Rajasthan Royals, Chahal has taken 66 wickets at an impressive average of 19.66 and an economy rate of 7.90.
The 2022 season was especially memorable for Chahal. He finished the tournament as the highest wicket-taker and won the Purple Cap after picking up 27 wickets. It was the best season ever by a Rajasthan Royals spinner and also the most wickets taken by any spinner for the team in a single IPL season.
