Image: Varun Chakravarthy has reached the top of T20I rankings / © X
A player who made his debut in 2021 against Sri Lanka, and within a few months got the tag of the most Hated Indian player. The young talent who made a promising debut was left out by the Indian team after they suffered a 10-wicket loss to Pakistan in the T20 World Cup 2021.
He was also not included in the Indian team for several years, but recently, he made a comeback to the Indian team and also played a crucial role for the team to win the Champions Trophy 2025. This is not just a fictional comeback, taken from any storybooks of cricket; it is the story of the one and only Varun Chakravarthy.
Despite being dropped from the Indian cricket team, his grit and passion didn’t go away, which helped him regain his place in the team. And now, he stands as one of the vital aspects in the team’s bowling line-up, which has helped him to gain the top spot in the ICC T20I Bowler rankings. With his consistent performances, Varun Chakravarthy has been a force to be reckoned with.
The journey of Varun, from pursuing architecture to mastering his own ability as a spin bowler, has been filled with several obstacles. But these obstacles also led to the greatest comeback in the history of Indian cricket in the shortest format. Let’s take a look at the career of Varun Chakravarthy and how he became one of India’s finest spinners.
Varun Chakravarthy was born on 29 August 1991 and had a passion for the game since his childhood. During his school days, he started playing the game for his school team as a wicket-keeper. But after a few years of his struggle at the school level, he decided to quit the game to focus more on his academics.
Later, Chakravarthy went on to pursue his Bachelor’s in Architecture from the renowned SRM University. He also got a job, but decided to quit the same at the age of 25, to pursue his career back in cricket. At that time, he used to be a pace bowler, but the injury issues made him try spin bowling, which led to him being an architect of his cricket career.
Since Varun Chakravarthy was from the south, he went on to train himself more and eventually participated in the Tamil Nadu Premier League. He played a number of seasons and came into the limelight during the TNPL 2018 season. Playing for Madurai Panthers this season, he helped the team to get their maiden title.
Varun Chakravarthy took just 9 wickets for the team in 10 matches, but he maintained an economy rate of 4.70 runs per over. Such impressive figures helped him to be noticed by the IPL teams, as the auction for IPL 2019 was also nearing after the conclusion of the TNPL. Thus, Chakravarthy ended up getting his first IPL contract, as Kings XI Punjab bought him for 8.4 crore INR.
His debut match in the IPL didn’t go well, as he was bashed for 25 runs in his very first over. Varun played just one match for Punjab in that season, and he was eventually released from the team ahead of the IPL 2020 auction. This time, Kolkata Knight Riders saw the talent in him and bought him for the next season.
With the tournament taking place in Dubai, Varun Chakravarthy showcased his real talent with the Kolkata Knight Riders. He went on to take his first-ever five-wicket haul in the IPL against Delhi Capitals, having the figures of 5/20. Eventually, he was able to take 17 wickets for the team in 13 matches at an average of 20.94, and an economy of 6.84 runs per over.
Later, Varun Chakravarthy continued to impress in the IPL 2021 season, as he played an important role for Kolkata Knight Riders in reaching the tournament finals. Taking 18 wickets in 17 matches, he had an average of 24.88 and an economy of 6.58 runs per over. Although Kolkata Knight Riders lost the final, Varun Chakravarthy was able to make his mark among the selectors.
With Varun Chakravarthy showcasing his skills in the Indian Premier League, he eventually received his maiden call-up for the team in the T20I format. During the India tour of Sri Lanka, Chakravarthy was selected in the squad for a three-match T20I series. He made his debut in the first T20I and finished with the figures of 1/28, taking the wicket of Dasun Shanaka as his maiden T20I wicket.
Throughout the series, he took just 2 wickets but maintained an economy of 5.30 runs per over. This eventually helped Varun Chakravarthy to be a part of the Indian team in the T20 World Cup 2021. It surely was a big time for Chakravarthy to prove himself, as shortly after making his debut for the Indian team, he got to be a part of the team in the T20 World Cup.
However, he didn’t know that his dream to play the T20 World Cup for India could turn into his biggest nightmare. Varun Chakravarthy played just 3 matches for India throughout the tournament, and he went wicketless in all games, and even held an economy rate of 6.45 runs per over. Amidst all this, the Indian team also suffered a humiliating loss against Pakistan.
Varun Chakravarthy played his last T20 World Cup match against Scotland and conceded just 15 runs in 3 overs. In the previous game against New Zealand, he went wicketless and conceded just 23 runs in 4 overs. The match against New Zealand was the last chance for the Indian team to get its place in the next stage, as the team ended up being knocked out of the group stage.
However, Varun Chakravarthy saw his worst phase start from the match against Pakistan. He didn’t take any wickets in the most important game and conceded 33 runs, which allowed Pakistan to chase down India’s total with 10 wickets remaining. At this time, he received a lot of hatred from the Indian fans, and eventually, he was also dropped from the Indian team shortly after making his debut.
After his poor performance for the Indian team, taking just 2 wickets in 6 matches, he was dropped, leaving him with just the Indian Premier League and Tamil Nadu Premier League. Varun Chakravarthy tried his best to stage a comeback in the IPL 2022 season, but it turned out to be the worst for him.
During IPL 2022, he took just 6 wickets in 11 matches at an average of 55.33, and an economy of 8.51 runs per over. Taking a look at such performances, it was clear to almost every fan that his career is almost finished, and it would be impossible for him to stage a comeback at this stage.
But no one was aware of what was coming next, as Varun Chakravarthy started his comeback from the IPL 2023 season. Playing for Kolkata Knight Riders, he took 20 wickets in 14 matches at an average of 21.45 and an economy of 8.14 runs per over. In this season, Kolkata Knight Riders finished 7th in the season, due to which he again stayed away from the limelight.
However, talent cannot be hidden all the time, as Varun Chakravarthy continued his brilliance in the IPL 2024 season. This time, Kolkata Knight Riders was also able to dominate the entire season, as Varun Chakravarthy played a vital role for the team to get its third IPL title win. He finished the season among the team’s leading wicket-takers, with 21 wickets in 15 matches at an average of 19.14, and an economy of 8.04 runs per over.
The BCCI selectors could not ignore the improvements seen in the performances of Varun Chakravarthy, due to which he eventually became a part of the Indian team for the T20I series against Bangladesh. Although the opponents were not strong, it was an opportunity for Varun Chakravarthy to mark his place in the Indian cricket team.
Playing all three T20I games for the team, he finished as the team’s leading wicket-taker in the series with 5 wickets in 3 matches at an average of 14.60 runs per wicket. With his strong performances against Bangladesh, he was eventually selected for the Indian team against South Africa, marking his first tour of the Proteas.
The India tour of South Africa turned out to be a turning point for him, as he made everyone know that he doesn’t only take wickets in India, but also on the away pitches. Chakravarthy ended the series as the highest wicket-taker, with 12 wickets in 4 matches at an average of 11.50 runs per wicket.
He also played in the five-match T20I series against England at home, and again finished as the leading wicket-taker of the series, with 14 wickets in 5 matches at an average of 9.85 runs per wicket. There were speculations that Varun Chakravarthy to be a part of the Indian team in the Champions Trophy 2025.
The captain, Rohit Sharma, took a brave call, taking a look at the conditions in Dubai, as he picked Varun Chakravarthy over Mohammed Siraj in the team. He played his first match against New Zealand, which was India’s last in the Group stages. Eventually, he took his first five-wicket haul in the ODI format and even won the POTM award for his performances.
In the semi-final match against Australia, Chakravarthy took 2 wickets, which also included a crucial wicket of Travis Head, who had been dominating over India in the ICC playoffs. Later, he also took 2 wickets in the finals against New Zealand, which helped India to win the Champions Trophy 2025.
Now, Varun Chakravarthy is playing for India in the Asia Cup 2025, which is also his first Asia Cup, as he sets his eyes on the T20 World Cup 2026. As per the new ICC rankings, Varun Chakravarthy is now ranked as number 1 in the T20I bowler rankings, being only the second Indian spinner to be in the list.