Is Varun Chakravarthy, the top-ranked bowler in the world, an obvious pick for the T20 World Cup final?
Just four matches ago, before the Super Eights began, it would have been blasphemous to even consider leaving out Varun for the final. He is, after all, the top-ranked bowler in the format. Despite the recent blip, Varun’s 2026 numbers read 17 wickets in 11 games at 8.90 an over. Of the four men tied on 13 wickets at the top of the charts for this World Cup, Varun is the only one whose team is yet to be knocked out.
On paper, it may seem outrageous that the thought of dropping him is even encouraged. That it is considered is largely for two reasons. One, India have a boutique to choose from: Kuldeep Yadav if they want a wrist-spinner any other side would have been happy to have, Washington Sundar if they want to boost the batting, and Mohammed Siraj if they want the extra fast bowler.
However, the second reason is more important. Across the last four games, Varun’s figures read 16-0-186-4 (the economy reads 11.63). Of his six most expensive figures (the only instances of him conceding 40), three came in this four-game phase, while the Zimbabwe match is at joint 10th place. Varun’s ten most expensive spells also features three entries from the series just before the World Cup – against New Zealand.
Sandwiched between the New Zealand series and the Super Eights was the group stage. There, Varun bowled against Pakistan, a team without many power hitters (and whose sting was taken out by fast bowlers) and three Associate Nations, whose batters seldom face spinners of his calibre. That changed with the South Africa game.
Blame it on Miller
South Africa were 20-3 in Ahmedabad when Suryakumar Yadav brought on Varun in the fifth over. This very logical move fell apart when David Miller, after edging one for four, lofted the next ball over mid-off for another.
Varun adjusted his length. When he returned for the ninth over, Miller lofted the second ball deep into the stands. After he ran a single, Dewald Brevis cut Varun for four. When Varun pitched up, Brevis hit him for six. Throughout that night, whenever Varun pitched up, the South Africans hit him in the V, often in the air. When he held the length back, they cut him.
Despite being a master of variations, Varun does not turn the ball by the proverbial mile. Flat pitches reduce that turn even more. Miller might have started it, but since then, the batters have simply reached the pitch of the ball and hit him straight, through the line, not caring which way the ball would turn.
In other words, they began to play him like a seamer.
Noticing this, Surya decided to give him the cushion of fielders on the straight boundary by delaying his entry point until the powerplay got over against the West Indies. Barring the occasional slightly short ball, he looked much better in his first three overs before a delayed final over ruined his figures.
Against England, he began too short before adjusting his length. If the first ball was ordinary, the second was not, and neither was the third (which he bowled from the off stump). Jacob Bethell dismissed each of these for a six. He had tried two lengths and two lines and nothing worked.
In his next over, Varun gave away three fours – again, to decent balls – past mid-wicket, cover, square-leg. By the fourth over, Varun looked spent, if a bit desperate for options that he did not seem to have. Bethell and Will Jacks were simply attacking him with normal front-foot shots or, depending on the length, the sweep or the cut.
New Zealand would have noticed this. India will almost certainly keep him away from Finn Allen and Tim Seifert for as long as possible, but when he comes on, their batters already know how to take him on.
Varun will undoubtedly come up with a new trick or two up his sleeve – it is absurd to doubt his supreme abilities – but he did not seem to have any against England. His inclusion would still have been a no-brainer, but India do have some truly exceptional alternatives.
What about Abhishek Sharma?
Like Varun, Abhishek, too, has had an ordinary World Cup. At least Varun has the wickets to show: Abhishek does not even have the runs.
However, Abhishek’s string of low scores – unlike the longer formats, these are not necessarily failures – can be attributed to his role in the XI. Abhishek thrives on early, explosive starts, which suits India, who want him in that role. He has the rare ability to decide matches despite not batting for very long. The caveat of that approach is the risks he takes early in the innings, which makes periodic streaks of low scores inevitable. Unfortunately, it happened in a World Cup.
Read more: Three games, three ducks: Why Abhishek Sharma’s form shouldn’t bother India
Three times in seven innings, Abhishek has been unable to outlast the first overs bowled by off-spinners. In each case, he was dismissed trying to hit off-spin against the turn. If he wants, he can simply play out the off-spinner and take on the bowling at the other end. He can, in general, play out the early overs (three other dismissals also involve high-risk shots very early in the innings).
That he does not is because he chooses not to, and because that is not a role India expect of him. He is choosing to risk his reputation if that means wasting fewer balls.
Varun’s case is different. He is still bowling well – but now batters have found a way to dominate him. It is not a matter of choice for him. Unless he figures out a way, batters are likely to dominate him the same way. But then, for all you know, he may already have figured out a remedy...
