Captain of Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) Ajinkya Rahane Varun Chakraborty is not worried about his recent poor form ahead of the 2026 Indian Premier League (IPL) season.
Chakravarthy's poor finish to India's title-winning T20 World Cup campaign attracted a lot of attention. Despite being the joint-highest wicket-taker in the tournament with Jasprit Bumrah with 14 wickets, the spinner had an economy rate of 9.25.
Despite his expensive bowling spell in T20 World Cup, Rahane said it was just a weak chance ChakrabortySomething that shouldn't require much attention as it's just a part of the game.
“When you have a long career in T20 cricket, first of all, you have things like that. It's almost like a batsman sometimes doesn't score runs. And that's just the way cricket is. I think with Varun, it's one of those things, he has played a lot of T20 cricket last year… So, a lot of teams will obviously try things (against him). Sometimes the conditions are not conducive to his style of bowling. You get that Also need to understand that he is always bowling difficult overs for the team,” Rahane said during the team's first press conference at Eden Gardens.
“He is bowling in those stages of the game where two batsmen are set. He is coming in and trying to take wickets. So, I wouldn't say there is anything wrong with him. After the World Cup he has got a good break of 10 days. I think sometimes a cricketer needs a break. And the beauty of a team game is that sometimes if Varun doesn't come, someone else comes in,” he added.
Rahane has insisted that rather than criticize Chakravarthy, the batsman deserves a lot of praise for playing well against a quality bowler in the T20 World Cup.
“And we don't want to put that kind of pressure on Varun. He is a player who has done well year after year. So, there is nothing wrong in that. I thought in the World Cup, the opposition batsmen played really well. Let's give them credit instead of talking about Varun. As a group, we are really confident about Varun… So, as a captain and as a group, as a team, we are not really worried,” Rahane. Said.
Chakravarthy will be one of the key bowlers for KKR in 2026 along with Sunil Narine. The 34-year-old has taken 99 wickets for the three-time champions since making his debut for the franchise in 2020.
Last season, the legbreak bowler took 17 wickets in 13 matches at an economy of 7.66, finishing as his team's joint-highest wicket-taker along with fast bowler Vaibhav Arora.
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