New Delhi: For a long time, Varun Chakravarthy has been packaged as the mystery spinner batters are meant to decode. But as someone who seems to put a lot of thought into his bowling, he probably knows that mystery fades and so mastery must endure. And so, his process now is not so much about the novelty of his unseen variations but the perpetual refinement of what he already owns.
At the Arun Jaitley Stadium on Thursday, the surface didn’t exactly misbehave but some deliveries did hold up, and the others kept low. It wasn’t a turner but Varun found control and bowled a short but sharp spell of 2-0-7-3 that broke the back of the Namibia chase before they could gather any momentum. What stood out was Varun running in faster and bowling faster.
Breaking down his spell after the match, Varun highlighted that what stood out was not mystery but method. “I have definitely worked on a few aspects such as speed and more revs,” he explained. “People work on variations also, but I worked on perfecting my existing ways. I worked on my follow-through so that I can get more zip off the wicket.”
That zip is crucial. On a pitch where the ball kept a bit low, pace through the air and sharpness off the deck mattered more than sharp turn. “This (pitch) was definitely a little surprising, but we have to adapt to whatever comes our way.”
Adapting has been the theme of his evolution since his T20I debut in 2021. Thrown into a T20 World Cup game against Pakistan with hopes that he would succeed as he did with Kolkata Knight Riders, Varun went wicketless (0/33) after an India batting collapse as Pakistan won by 10 wickets.
Come the fixture in Colombo on Sunday, this version of Varun now is less about illusion and more about precision. “I have worked on my over-spin rather than side-spin and more speed and zip off the wicket,” he said.
“The basic plan is to take wickets and keep attacking the stumps,” he said, explaining the simplicity behind his complex bag of tricks. Out of Thursday’s three wickets – Louren Steenkamp, Jan Nicol Loftie-Eaton and JJ Smit – two came off googlies. He doesn’t usually start with a googly but bowled Steenkamp with one first delivery. “Sometimes it’s just my instinct,” he said.
Conditions added another layer. Dew has been a looming issue in this tournament, especially in night games, particularly in northern India. “Dew does play a big factor when you are bowling second and if you have to defend.” There was dew on Thursday evening, but it didn’t worry him. “We play a lot of IPL. We know how to bowl if the dew comes in.”
While a large part of Varun’s bowling is about his ‘mystery’ and mastering his repertoire is important, adding new deliveries remains important.
Tricks up his sleeve
Before the Namibia fixture, assistant coach Ryan ten Doeschate had spoken about how Varun could spring surprises in the upcoming fixtures. “I’ve got a longstanding relationship with Varun from KKR and I understand how he operates. He likes consistency and his work ethic is exceptional. If he has bowled only 12 balls in the game, you can be 100% sure he’s going to bowl 12 balls after the game as well.”
He added: “He has worked on a few new deliveries which you’ll see rolled out in various stages. Not that he needs to but that’s the level of professionalism that you can expect from Varun. He is always trying to be better, we are always analysing the areas he bowls and the areas he needs to bowl – on surfaces and to specific players. He is a great thinker of the game and likes to spend time and work on his craft.”
Varun hinted that what we have seen might not be the final set of his bowling variations. “I always have something coming up,” he said. “If I am courageous enough, I will try it in the next match.”
“There are few balls which just click for me in the matches. And there have been a few variations which I have been trying for the last six years, they have still not come up. So, it just depends on the complexity of the delivery.”
Some may have been stuck in the lab for years, but if all comes together, the high-stakes Colombo game could well be the stage where they make an appearance.
