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In an interesting reveal, Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) assistant coach Abhishek Nayar said on Friday that spinner Varun Chakravarthy was once asked to improve his batting and fielding to make it to the Indian team.
Although Nayar didn't confirm when Chakravarthy was told this, the tweaker last played for India in the 2021 T20 World Cup. In three games, he bowled 11 overs for no wickets at an economy rate of 6.45.
As India exited the tournament from the group stage, he was never selected again, even for bilateral rubbers, despite being among the best Indian spinners in the IPL in the next 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 Chakavarthy has picked up 41 wickets -- the highest for any bowler in this period -- at an average of 20.26. In 2024, he was Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR)'s highest wicket-taker and played a key role in their title triumph.
Not only Varun Chakravarthy, India don't have many spinners who can bat
Chakravarthy being left out for his batting ability is interesting because, in the last five years, only Kuldeep Yadav has matched his wicket-taking ability while also possessing decent batting qualities. Yuzvendra Chahal, who's in the T20 World Cup squad, isn't known for his batting skills, and neither is Ravi Bishnoi, the wrist-spinner who was India's first choice in T20Is before IPL 2024.
