In an intriguing disclosure, Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) assistant coach Abhishek Nayar revealed on Friday that spinner Varun Chakravarthy was once told to enhance his batting and fielding to secure a place in the Indian team.
Although Nayar did not specify when Chakravarthy received this advice, the spinner last played for India in the 2021 T20 World Cup. In three matches, he bowled 11 wicketless overs with an economy rate of 6.45.
Following India’s group stage exit from the tournament, Chakravarthy was not selected again, even for bilateral series, despite ranking among the top Indian spinners in the IPL over the subsequent three years.
“Varun Chakravarthy performs every year in the Vijay Hazare [Trophy], everywhere,” Nayar said on The Ranveer Show Podcast.
“But I remember selectors told him, ‘You should improve your batting, you’ll be able to make the cut; Improve your fielding and you’ll be able to make the cut’. That was the mindset. So he scored a few runs in the Vijay Hazare this time and sent me a video [saying,] ‘I hit two sixes, scored 40 runs.’
“So players automatically start thinking like that because they know it’s a requirement. He has also improved his fielding. So, there are things that players work on because they know it’s a requirement that you have to do all three things, you can’t survive with just one thing.”
Since IPL 2023, Varun Chakravarthy has taken 41 wickets, the most by any bowler during this period, with an average of 20.26. In 2024, he was the leading wicket-taker for Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) and played a crucial role in their title victory.
Besides Varun Chakravarthy, India lack spinners who are also proficient batsmen
Chakravarthy’s exclusion due to his batting ability is notable because, in the past five years, only Kuldeep Yadav has matched his wicket-taking prowess while also being a capable batsman. Yuzvendra Chahal, part of the T20 World Cup squad, lacks batting skills, as does Ravi Bishnoi, the wrist-spinner who was India’s preferred T20I choice before IPL 2024.
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