Have had a dream to play together for India since the day we have held a cricket ball, reveal Deepak and Rahul Chahar
Deepak Chahar and Rahul Chahar have reminisced their journey from being cousin brothers to neighbours, Ranji Trophy teammates and ultimately fierce rivals in the IPL. The duo has been selected for Indiaās T20 squad for the Carribean tour and might play together for the first time in an Indian shirt.
Ever since the day Rahul Chahar was born on the 4th of August 1999, just three days before his cousin brother Deepakās seventh birthday, the two have shared a close bond. They grew up in houses facing each other, started playing serious cricket on the same turf in the backyard and were guided by the same guru - Deepakās father, Lokendrasingh Chahar. Now, the two are closer than ever to achieving their childhood dream of playing for India together, having been picked for the T20 series against West Indies starting today.
āSince the day I held a cricket ball I've been thinking of playing for India, and when he held the ball, that's what he thought too - that we're going to play together for India. These are all just steps on the way - Ranji Trophy and other tournaments. Papa always taught us to aim big. For Rahul, Papa always tells him, āYou are a bowler who can take 300-400 wickets for India,āā Deepak Chahar said in an interview with ESPNCricinfo.
The 26-year-old first shot into the limelight having taken eight wickets on his Ranji debut for Rajasthan but his catapult to success came when he took 10 wickets in as many wickets for Chennai Super Kings. His 22-wicket-haul this season has now earned him another chance in the national squad. All his life, he has only played for an IPL team that had in it MS Dhoni and it is the veteran wicket-keeper that kept giving him chances to prove himself.
āMahi Bhai is among those people who will back you fully. He won't change his decision after just one or two matches. I knew that I would get at least five-six matches. And he told me later, that in their initial planning talks he had said, "This guy will play all 14 matches, so let's talk of the others." He had that belief in me. And if Mahendra Singh Dhoni can believe in me so much, it gave me a reason to believe in my own abilities. That is his greatness - he gives players confidence,ā Deepak Chahar said of the former Indian skipper.
His cousin Rahul Chahar plays for fierce rivals Mumbai Indians and made his Ranji debut two seasons ago for Rajasthan. With Deepak already a senior player of the team by then, Rahul had someone to fall back upon and take feedback from to improve for the future.Ā Ā
āIt makes a difference. He has seen me since childhood, and there was someone to show me the ropes. The biggest advantage of having him around is that if there is a problem with my bowling, he'll pick it up and tell me. Because of him, the seniors in the team already knew me, so I didn't feel as intimidated,ā Rahul recalled.