Mystery spinner Varun Chakravarthy, who has been a key player for the Indian team as well as the Kolkata Knight Riders side, believes that consistency is the key to success and he’s working on adding new variations to his craft. From battling fitness challenges to becoming a key figure in India’s recent Champions Trophy triumph where he took nine wickets, the architect-turned-cricketer has had a remarkable journey. Chakravarthy formed a deadly spin quartet with Kuldeep Yadav (seven wickets), Ravindra Jadeja (five), and Axar Patel (five) to form a web around the opposition during the Champions Trophy.
“The main thing is working on consistency, which is the toughest thing to master and I am putting in constant work in order to achieve that,” the 33-year-old stated in a release.
“And of course, I am working on a few other deliveries which I’m hoping will come off nicely in the upcoming games.” Reigning champions KKR will kick off their IPL campaign against Royal Challengers Bengaluru at Eden Gardens here on Saturday.
One of the most anticipated match-ups of the season will be Chakravarthy’s face-off with RCB’s star batter Virat Kohli.
However, he downplayed any special rivalry with the Bengaluru-based franchise.
“Nothing in specific, just the situation of those matches which helped me pick wickets. In all those games the conditions and the situations were completely favourable towards us so I was able to extract the best possible result,” he said.
KKR will have a new captain in Ajinkya Rahane and mentor in T20 legend Dwayne Bravo.
The Tamil Nadu spinner was optimistic about the squad’s potential and said the key would be to find the right combination early in the season.
“The squad looks good. I think it’s about cracking the code and having the best playing XI performing consistently. If we are able to get a set core in the first three matches, then we have great chances ahead in this season.” A late bloomer in cricket, Chakravarthy initially pursued a degree in architecture and worked as a freelancer before chasing his cricketing dreams at 25.
His breakthrough came in the Tamil Nadu Premier League, where his performances caught the eye of then Kings XI Punjab captain R Ashwin and the franchise secured him for a staggering INR 8.4 crore in the 2019 IPL auction.
However, his fortunes changed when KKR roped him in ahead of the 2020 season.
He quickly made an impact, bagging 17 wickets at an average of 20.94, a performance that earned him a maiden India call-up for the Australia tour later that year.
Unfortunately, fitness issues forced him to withdraw, leading to a rehabilitation stint at the National Cricket Academy.
Chakravarthy finally made his India debut against Sri Lanka in 2021 and was soon selected for the T20 World Cup. He continued his impressive IPL run, picking 18 wickets in 2021 and later delivering his best season in 2023 with 20 wickets.
In IPL 2024, Chakravarthy was the second-highest wicket-taker with 21 scalps, playing a crucial role in KKR’s title-winning campaign.
His partnership with Sunil Narine was deadly and helped KKR clinch their third IPL trophy after a decade-long wait. PTI TAP PM TAP PM PM
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