On chakaravarthy

T20 World Cup: With 50 days remaining for the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2026 to get underway in India and Sri Lanka, anticipation around how the defending champions campaign would pan out has intensified. Defending champions India are scheduled to announce their squad at the BCCI HQ in Mumbai on Saturday afternoon, a move that is expected to set the tone for their title defence.

Former India players Irfan Pathan and Robin Uthappa, who were a part of the 2007 T20 World Cup-winning side in South Africa, have identified Abhishek Sharma and Varun Chakaravarthy as key figures in India's bid to retain their title.

"Abhishek Sharma is actually going out there and scaring the opposition's new ball bowlers, which is very important to put them on the back foot. I actually said it recently as well - he's doing the same role as the someone who's actually bowling with the new ball, taking the early wicket in the first or second over. When you do that, you're actually putting your team ahead of the other team.