Varun Chakravarthy has finished his quota only once in four games.
Varun Chakravarthy has continued his fine bowling form at the T20 World Cup 2026, picking wickets consistently in every game. He is currently the second-leading wicket-taker in the competition, with nine wickets at an average of 6.89 and an economy rate of 5.17 in four innings.
However, he has completed his spell only once – in the opening game against USA – and has been restricted from finishing his set in three of the latest games. Varun bowled two overs against Namibia before three each against Pakistan and Netherlands, with the Indian team experimenting with other combinations ahead of the all-important Super 8 phase.
The spinner Yuzvendra Chahal and former cricketer Aakash Chopra have expressed their displeasure over Varun not bowling all four overs in three consecutive games. Aakash posted on his official X (formerly Twitter) account to highlight the issue, and Chahal quoted it, saying, “Couldn’t agree more bhaiya”.
“Surprising that Varun isn’t finishing his quota of overs. Only once he’s bowled all 4. He would’ve taken at least one 5-fer if he was allowed to finish his quota. He Is and He Will be the most important bowler along with Boom in the next round.”
India have always tried to explore as many options as possible under the new management, with Suryakumar Yadav also showing a liking towards trying multiple combinations in the batting and bowling departments. Hence, the broader approach has been to hand the ball to fringe or non-specialist options, allowing them to get into the groove ahead of the next phase.
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Shivam Dube, in particular, has been entrusted with more overs than usual, even at the cost of being expensive at times, which has largely prevented Varun Chakravarthy from completing his full quota. He bowled 2.2 overs against Namibia in Delhi and another three against Netherlands in Ahmedabad.
Dube didn’t bowl against USA, the only game where Varun completed his quota in the tournament, and Pakistan, where India tried as many as three overs of Tilak Varma and Rinku Singh. The conditions suited slow bowlers, and once Pakistan were out of the game, Tilak and Rinku rolled their arms, keeping Varun out.
It is a double-edged approach: while India believe in trying as many options as possible, the likes of Aakash and Chahal feel that constant experimentation may not help Varun settle. That said, the spinner is still expected to bowl all four overs in the upcoming Super 8 matches against stronger opponents, where his mystery will help India get crucial wickets in the middle overs.
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