India’s right-arm mystery spinner Varun Chakravrthy has been added to the ODI squad for the three-match series against England starting from 6th February in Nagpur. Rewarded for his brilliant show in the recently concluded T20I series, Varun’s name was voiced heavily by many experts for the ODI series, especially after his heroics in the T20I series. One his statemates and recently retired legendary spinner R Ashwin voiced his opinions for Varun’s inclusion in the Champions Trophy squad.
“I have a feeling that Varun might get a chance to play in the ODI series between India and England. I don’t think it’s an easy call to take him directly to the Champions Trophy,” – Ashwin stated on his YouTube channel.
Varun Chakravarthy has been training with the ODI team in Nagpur
Varun had a brilliant outing in the recently concluded 5-match T20I series against England. The mystery spinner scalped 14 wickets in the series and bagged the Man of the Series award. The 33-year-old was spotted training with the ODI squad in Nagpur on Tuesday and India’s vice-captain Shubman Gill has revealed that the spinner has been added to the squad.
Talking about his domestic numbers, Varun has so far featured in 23 List A 50-over matches and has scalped 59 wickets at a 19.8 strike rate. He was the pick of the bowlers among spinners in the recently concluded Vijay Hazare Trophy. The mystery spinner finished the tournament as the leading wicket-taker among spinners scalpping 18 wickets at an average of 12.16 with his best figures being 5 for 9.
With Varun’s addition, the squad now features as many as 5 spinners. Axar Patel, Washington Sundar, Ravindra Jadeja and Kuldeep Yadav are already in the squad named for this series and the forthcoming Champions Trophy as well.
India’s ODI squad vs England: Rohit Sharma (C), Shubman Gill (VX), Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer, KL Rahul (WK), Hardik Pandya, Axar Patel, Washington Sundar, Kuldeep Yadav, Harshit Rana, Mohammed Shami, Arshdeep Singh, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Rishabh Pant (WK), Ravindra Jadeja, Varun Chakravarthy
