India pacer Deepak Chahar on Tuesday said he feels ODI cricket is tougher than T20Is and Tests. Chahar made his T20I debut before making it to the ODI team, said he is trying to improve his bowling in the middle overs.

“I think ODI is the toughest format. In T20Is, you know what to do. Even if you give away 24 runs but don’t pick up a wicket, that is still good bowling. In Tests, you have to keep attacking, even if you give away runs but pick up wickets, it’s good for the team,” Deepak Chahar told the press in Visakhapatnam.

“However, in ODIs, you have to mix both — pick up wickets and contain the runs as well. You have to read the situation really well. You need to understand what the team wants from you. You need to assess the batsman and then decide whether to contain or get him out,’ he shared.

“ODI is more difficult than both formats. I have played a lot of One-Day cricket with India A, which has helped me. In the past, I struggled to bowl in the middle overs. In the powerplay, it’s about containing runs, in death, you have to stop batsman going after you. But in the middle overs, I have gotten better. I am learning. I will learn as I progress,” he added.

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Meanwhile, Deepak Chahar also said he is working on his pace and, at the same time, getting the ball to move at that pace as well.

“When I played Ranji Trophy for the 1st year, I used to bowl at around 125 kph. I struggled with injuries because I wanted to improve my pace. I knew I wouldn’t survive in international cricket with that pace. I had to bowl close to 140 kph. I always wanted to bowl close to 140 kph and swing the ball at that pace. It becomes deadly then. I think playing a bowler bowling at 140 kph and swinging the ball is more difficult than playing someone who bowls at 150 kph,” Deepak said.

“In the next 6 months, there’s a lot of cricket to be played. My main focus is to keep myself fit. I want to play all the matches. I want to avoid the injuries that have occurred to me in the past.”

Despite posting 287 on a slow Chennai wicket on Sunday, India lost the 1st ODI to West Indies by 8 wickets. Shimron Hetmyer and Shai Hope scored hundreds and sealed the deal in just 47.5 overs.

“To be honest, we didn’t bowl well in the 1st ODI. Hopefully, if we are in a similar situation in the 2nd ODI, we will have to bowl better as a unit. Fielding has been lacking in the last 4 matches. We have dropped too many matches. If we drop catches, against these big hitters who try to hit more sixes than boundaries, then it will become very difficult for us. As a fielding unit and bowling unit, we need to improve,” Deepak Chahar concluded.