India’s national selectors, led by Ajit Agarkar, surprised everyone by replacing opener Yashasvi Jaiswal with mystery spinner Varun Chakravarthy in the Champions Trophy squad. This move was unexpected, especially since the team already had four spinners—Ravindra Jadeja and Axar Patel, both left-arm spinning allrounders, Washington Sundar, an off-spinning allrounder, and Kuldeep Yadav, a wrist spinner.
Axar and Jadeja are almost certain to play because of their strong batting and fielding skills. However, the decision to include Varun despite having Kuldeep, who has a similar skill set, has raised many questions. If Axar, who has been batting as high as No. 5, and Jadeja are sure starters, the big question is—who will play between Kuldeep and Varun in the playing XI?
Kuldeep, a Chinaman bowler (left-arm wrist spinner), is rare in world cricket. His bowling confuses batters as he can spin the ball in different directions and sometimes make it go straight. On the other hand, Varun’s mystery spin allows him to turn the ball either way or make it zip straight.
Varun has been in great form, taking 14 wickets in five T20Is against England at an average of 9.85. His brilliant performance forced selectors to include him in ODIs. At 34, he became the oldest Indian debutant since Farokh Engineer when he played his first ODI against England. He took 1-54 in that match, and as former England batter Kevin Pietersen predicted, English batters found it easier to play him in ODIs compared to T20s. However, judging him based on just one ODI may not be fair.
Kuldeep has been a key player for India in the last two ICC tournaments. In the 2023 ODI World Cup, he took 15 wickets in 11 matches at an average of 28.26 and an economy rate of 4.45. Though he was expensive in the final against Australia (0-56 in 10 overs), he was still India’s fourth-highest wicket-taker in the tournament. He continued his good form in the 2024 T20 World Cup, taking 10 wickets in five matches at an average of 13.90.
Two former India left-arm spinners told TOI that they would prefer Kuldeep over Varun in the playing XI. Sunil Joshi, a former national selector and current Uttar Pradesh coach, pointed out that Varun was not effective when he last played in Dubai during the 2021 T20 World Cup. He believes Kuldeep’s ability to bowl traditional wrist-spin, googlies, and straight deliveries makes him a better choice. However, he also mentioned that the decision depends on captain Rohit Sharma’s preference and team strategy.
Another former spinner, Nilesh Kulkarni, noted that Rohit Sharma and head coach Gautam Gambhir seem to have more confidence in Varun’s mystery spin. He said that since Jadeja and Axar are sure to play as allrounders, Kuldeep would be a better choice as the third spinner due to his variations. However, since many teams haven’t played against Varun, Rohit might want to use him as a surprise weapon, especially in the Powerplay overs.
With both Kuldeep and Varun being strong options, it will be interesting to see whom the Indian team backs for the crucial matches ahead.
