Yuzvendra Chahal Biography – Early Life, Career, Records & IPL Journey

Yuzvendra Chahal is a prominent Indian cricketer who represents Team India in T20 and ODI formats with his leg-spin bowling. He is also a chess player who represented India in the World Youth Chess Championship.

Chahal is widely recognised in bowling for his control, accuracy, and ability to deceive batsmen with different variations; he is one of the most successful bowler in limited-overs cricket.

Chahal also holds major records, such as being the first Indian to take a 6-wicket haul in T20Is and the first IPL bowler to take 200 wickets.

Early life

Yuzvendra Chahal was born on 23 July 1990 in Jind, Haryana, India, and belongs to a middle-class family where his father encouraged his sporting talent. Initially, he started playing chess at the age of 6 and went on to represent India at the World Youth Chess Championship. He was ranked among the top junior chess players in the country, but due to financial constraints and a lack of sponsorship, he shifted focus towards cricket.

Then he started playing cricket casually while still involved in chess; initially, he played as a batsman, and then after some time, he was trained as a leg-spinner bowler, and he also joined local clubs in Haryana before entering professional cricket.

After stepping away from competitive chess, he began focusing full-time on cricket and started playing for Haryana in domestic cricket.

Therefore, slowly he got opportunities in different formats, such as domestic, franchise, underage, and international cricket, and gradually gained recognition in cricket.

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Domestic Career

Yuzvendra Chahal began his first-class cricket journey with Haryana during the 2009-10 Ranji Trophy, showcasing his skills as a right-arm leg-spinner. Later, he made his List A debut in the same year during the Vijay Hazare Trophy. 

Although he initially received limited opportunities, Chahal worked on developing his leg-spin variations. His breakthrough gameplay came during the 2011-12 Ranji Trophy, where he was a key spinner for Haryana. He continued his impressive form in the 2012–13 Vijay Hazare Trophy, standing out with his economical bowling and wicket-taking ability. These consistent domestic performances led him to the IPL and eventually the Indian national team.

International Carrer

Yuzvendra Chahal initially made his international debut for India in the ODI format on June 11, 2016, against Zimbabwe at Harare, recording impressive bowling figures of 1/27 in that match. In the second match, he took 3/26 and earned his first Man of the Match award in ODIs.

On June 18, 2016, he made his T20I debut against Zimbabwe and performed well in that match. Later, on February 1, 2017, he took a five-wicket haul in T20I  – 6/25 against England and finished as the highest wicket-taker in T20Is for the year 2017, with 23 wickets.

In 2019, he was selected for India’s World Cup squad and took 12 wickets in the tournament. Although he was dropped from the World Cup squad in 2021, he continued to perform well in the IPL. As a result, he was included in India’s squad for the 2024 ICC T20 World Cup, which India won, but Chahal didn’t play any matches in the tournament; he remained on bench.

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IPL Career

Yuzvendra Chahal began his IPL career with the Mumbai Indians (MI) in 2011, where he played just one match. He was part of the MI squad from 2011 to 2013, but he didn’t get many opportunities to play.

In 2014, Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) bought Chahal for ₹10 lakh, and he soon became a regular member of their playing XI. From 2014 to 2021, he was a key spinner for RCB and their leading wicket-taker in multiple seasons. However, RCB chose not to retain him ahead of the 2022 Mega Auction.

Then Chahal was bought by the Rajasthan Royals (RR) in the 2022 Mega Auction. During that season, he delivered a standout performance by taking a hat-trick and a five-wicket haul against the Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR), finishing as the Purple Cap winner with 27 wickets. He remained with RR until 2024, consistently delivering strong performances.

In IPL 2025, Chahal was picked by the Punjab Kings for ₹18 crore, which was one of the expensive buys for a spinner in IPL history. He is currently playing well this season, impressing with his performances once again.

Batting Career Summary

Bowling Career Summary