Varun Chakravarthy’s strong form in the 2024 IPL saw him called back to the Indian national team after a few years out of the picture. He has announced his return to the T20I side with a string of excellent performances, capped with a five-fer against South Africa in the second T20I at St. George’s Park.

Chakravarthy’s success came following a 21-wicket season for KKR, as he helped the team win this year’s edition of the tournament, and in doing so entered the picture for the Indian team especially following the appointment of KKR mentor Gautam Gambhir as head coach.

Speaking to the broadcast about the boost he received thanks to Gambhir’s involvement in the national team following the match in Gqeberha, Chakravarthy said "Yes, we played the Bangladesh tour and he was coaching the team. And definitely we spoke a lot and he gave me a lot of role clarity. He told me, even if you go for 30-40 runs, it doesn't matter. All you have to look is to pick wickets. So that's your role in the team. And yeah, the clarity which they gave definitely helped me.”

Chakravarthy's five wickets included the crucial dismissals of Heinrich Klaasen and David Miller, but India succumbed to a disappointing loss as they couldn't hang on to defend 124.

Bounce-back year for Varun

Chakravarthy received his Indian debut in 2021, and his combination of mystery spin and accuracy saw him travel to the UAE for that year’s T20 World Cup. However, he was one of the victims of a poor World Cup performance, dropped from the team and only getting intermittent playing time in the following months.

India opted for Kuldeep Yadav and Axar Patel for the successful T20 World Cup campaign in 2021, but with Kuldeep with the Test team and also battling injury, Chakravarthy has been given another chance as a lead spinner for India.

"Definitely, the last three years were a little tough,” continued Chakravarthy. “The only thing I could do was play lots of cricket. And I started playing a lot of the domestic league (TNPL) in India. And that definitely helped me understand my game better. And that's what helped me.”

Chakravarthy has been a mainstay for KKR in the IPL, taking at least 17 wickets in 4 of his 5 seasons of being a regular since 2020, including 41 across the last two years. A premier spinner in world cricket, the 33-year-old will be looking to nail down a spot as India’s go-to option in the shortest format of the game.

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