IND vs ZIM 2022: "The body and mind weren't working together" - Deepak Chahar on his return from injury in 1st ODI

Deepak Chahar made a superlative comeback to international cricket with a three-wicket haul in the first ODI of India's three-match series against Zimbabwe on Thursday, August 18, in Harare.

Chahar last played an international game in February. He had been out of action until the match against the African nation due to multiple injuries.

The 30-year-old's three scalps with the new ball broke Zimbabwe's backbone, from which they never recovered. He returned with figures of 3/27 from his seven overs at an economy of under eight.

Throwing light on jitteries from making a comeback after a long gap, Chahar stated at the post-match presentation:

"The landing was a little hard and when you play an international game after six and half months, obviously you will be a little nervous."

He added:

"Before coming here I played at least 4-5 practice games and the body and mind weren't working together in the first few overs, but it got better after that."

Chahar will hope to make the most of the opportunities in the next few months as he presents a case for himself ahead of the ICC T20 World Cup in Australia later this year.

He has been named in the reserves for the upcoming Asia Cup 2022, which gets underway on August 27 in the UAE.

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"I didn't have a proper footing and slipped" - Deepak Chahar

Chahar suffered another injury scare on his return as he slipped and fell to the ground while bowling. The right-arm pacer reckoned that he didn't get his footing right while bowling the bouncer.

"I slipped as I wanted to bowl a bouncer and couldn't bowl it well as I didn't have a proper footing and slipped. I'm fine and the body is fine as well," he revealed in the post-match presentation.

Deepak Chahar will hope to keep the momentum going when India lock horns with Zimbabwe in the second game on Sunday (August 20) at the Harare Sports Club.