Imran Tahir is my inspiration, says MI’s Chahar

Mumbai, May 4 (IANS) Mumbai Indians spinner Rahul Chahar on Saturday said that among the current bowlers he looks at Imran Tahir for inspiration. "When I was little I used to watch Shane Warne a lot," he said at a press conference prior to MI's IPL match against Kolkata Knight Riders. "Now I watch Imran Tahir. He has a lot of variations, regardless of the pitch and the conditions, he knows which ball to bowl."

Chahar revealed that he calls up Tahir whenever he needs help and the veteran South African spinner offers him advice. "I have his contact number and so whenever I call him with queries he always helps me out. I had gone to England with the U-19 side to play the Test matches and wanted to know more about the conditions there. I called him up and he helped me out with it," said Chahar.

Tahir's Chennai Super Kings teammate, Deepak Chahar, is Rahul's cousin but the latter said that the relationship doesn't matter when the two face each other on the field. "Deepak bhaiya's father has coached both of us. So he always keeps telling us on the phone that don't hold back if you face one another in the middle. You are my students so don't spoil my name. So we don't really think about the relationship when we face each other," he said.

Rahul added that it was Deepak, a medium pacer, who suggested that he should try bowling leg spin. "I did not have the ability for fast bowling when I was a kid. So bhaiyya told me to start leg spin," he said.

Mumbai Indians have fielded 10 debutants this season and Rahul's teammate Jayant Yadav said that this was a reflection of the depth of the squad. "We have fielded 10 debutants this year. That also shows that we are equipped tactically for every game and every condition. Every place throws up different conditions and apart from that there is also fielding certain players on the basis of who we face in the opposition."