Varun Chakravarthy and the Dubai International Cricket Stadium (DICS) appear to have a karmic relationship. He was initially spotted here in 2021 by then-India coach Ravi Shastri, who deemed him a match-winner and suggested that he be added to the Test squad for the forthcoming tour of Australia.
Days later, when Pakistan cruised to a resounding 10-wicket victory in the Twenty20 World Cup, Babar Azam and Muhammad Rizwan treated him like a club cricketer. In the same competition, he was also asked to open the bowling against New Zealand, but he once again returned without a wicket. Clearly his so-called’mystery’ had evaporated.
His mystery and his mojo returned on Sunday night. India put out a strong, experimental team with four spinners and just one specialized fast bowler because of the game’s meaningless character. As India coasted to a resounding 44-run victory in a very low-scoring contest, Chakravarthy, the fourth spinner, made an immediate impression, returning with five wickets and shattering the ghosts of 2021.
Yes, of course, we didn’t have a wonderful tournament here in 2021, and I didn’t have a terrific tournament either. However, I believe I bowled fairly well. However, the outcomes did not suit us. But for now, it seems good. In retrospect, Chakaravarthy said, “And Team India is doing well.”
He crushed the New Zealand batsmen with a variety of strokes in three bursts over ten overs, leaving the Indian team management unsure on whether to select him for the quarterfinal match against Australia in a few days. “I wanted to explore what he might provide because he had a unique quality. After the game, captain Rohit Sharma remarked, “We haven’t given the next game much thought, but it’s a good headache to have.”
“Oh, he bowled beautifully, didn’t he?,” noted Matt Henry, a pacer from New Zealand who took five wickets during the game. “I believe he demonstrated his ability tonight by bowling pace and turning the ball both ways. He struck me as intelligent. Chakaravarthy’s and Henry’s numbers were the same: 5 for 42.
As their captain Mitchell Santner stated, India’s four excellent spinners put a lot of pressure on the New Zealand batsmen, who were cruising at 93 for two and aiming for a modest 250. Naturally, Chakaravarthy—who was, incidentally, only playing his second ODI—was the most notable of the four.
Chakravarthy is a mystery as a bowler. Chakravarthy doesn’t bowl all of his variations, even in the nets, according to Rohit Sharma, a well-known individual. To avoid being sorted out by the batsmen, he is rumored to hold the mystery aspect close to his chest.
But on Sunday, he felt like sharing the details of his bowling technique. “Basically, the ball travels straight, inside, and outside. Therefore, you can leave it that way, but you can also make small adjustments to it,” he remarked, deciphering his bowling. If only it were that easy. His element of mystery is so delicate that it becomes as difficult to pick him as it is to play a white ball against a white sight screen.
Batsmen who are up against him ought to attest to that. His point of delivery, drift in the air, and changes in length and pace are some of the subtleties that are hard to pick out. Another important quality of Chakravarthy, who mostly uses deceit, is accuracy. He is challenging to pick, and it is a double whammy for the batters when the wicket provides help, like it did at DICS on Sunday night.
Of the 60 deliveries Chakravarthy bowled, the five that were most important—the ones that took wickets—might not have been his finest of the evening, but he still finished his allotted 10 overs. Will Young became Chakravarthy’s first victim after he played one onto the stumps. After hitting a six, Glenn Phillips became a little too ambitious, Michael Bracewell was dismissed for LBW, and Mitchell Santner was dismissed for a seam-up delivery that lacked any true intrigue. At last, Matt Henry was fired as he tried to speed up. However, his success in those seemingly innocent deliveries might have been due to the quality and deceit of the other 55 deliveries.
He later acknowledged, “Yeah, I believe I can do it better.” But it’s definitely not what I’d call luck. However, it was undoubtedly prearranged. I organized every delivery. And it occurs if it does. You can’t call anything that happens in cricket “luck.”
For Chakravarthy, 33, who is mainly a T20 cricket product, it’s always a struggle when he has enough time in the one-dayers. Because batters are frequently rushing to attack him in T20s, as opposed to ODIs, he benefits in the shorter format. But the spinner for the Tamil Nadu and Kolkata Knight Riders has improved, honing his skills in the domestic 50-over Vijay Hazare competition.
Chakaravarthy remarked, “It really helped me to understand when I can bowl my incoming delivery, outgoing delivery, or the straighter one,” of his transition to the 50-over format. “I was more aware of when to bowl after that. What I do in the T20 is quite different from this. In other words, I had to play a lot.
When India plays Australia in the semifinal on Tuesday, that shift will be put to the ultimate test.
