New Delhi. There was a time when the batsman standing at the crease used to try to solve Varun Chakraborty’s fingers like a puzzle. His combination of ‘carrom ball’ and ‘leg cutter’ had forced the great batsmen of the world to kneel but the world of cricket is cruel, here the expiry date of ‘mystery’ comes very early.
Today the discussion in the corridors of IPL is whether Varun Chakraborty has become the second Ajanta Mendis? Just as Sri Lanka’s Mendis created a stir with his mystery and then suddenly became an easy prey for the batsmen, now a similar situation seems to be happening with this star spinner of Kolkata Knight Riders.
Chakraborty’s ‘mystery’ decoded?
Statistics don’t lie and in the case of Varun Chakravarthy, they are screaming that the batsmen have ‘decoded’ his bowling. The strength of any mystery spinner is his unpredictability, but when the batsman catches your release point and the movement of your fingers, then you are reduced to an ordinary bowler. In the last few matches, it has been seen that instead of being defensive against Varun, the batsmen are now playing by dominating him. They no longer wait for the ball to turn, but are ready for the big shot by sensing the length.
Scary statistics: pressure on economy and run rate
The sharpness in Varun Chakraborty’s bowling that was there in the 2020 and 2021 seasons seems to be missing now. If we look at the figures, the situation is worrying. If we look at the report card of the last 6 matches, Varun has given away around 273 runs in his last 6 matches. The most surprising thing is his economy of 11. In a shorter format like T-20, where a spinner’s job is to check the run rate, giving 11 runs per over is proving to be suicidal for the team. Even at the beginning of the current season, so far in this IPL he has bowled a total of 6 overs, in which he has spent 79 runs. In return only 1 wicket has come to his account. This performance is nowhere in comparison to the stature of the bowler who was retained by KKR for a huge sum.
Why comparison with Ajanta Mendis?
When Ajanta Mendis entered international cricket, he was considered almost impossible to play, but as the era of video analytics and technology progressed, batsmen started reading his hand, when Mendis lacked a ‘Plan-B’, his career went downhill. Varun Chakraborty is also standing at the same point today, if he does not add something new to his bowling or change his pace and length, then he will remain in the pages of history as a ‘one season wonder’.
comeback challenge
Varun Chakravarthy has been a match winner for KKR, but the current form is disturbing the balance of the team. Will Varun make a comeback by working on his flaws or will this attack by the batsmen put an end to his career? Only time will tell, but at the moment the mystery in the name of ‘Mystery Spinner’ has disappeared and only the process of scoring runs is left.
