India has added another spin bowler Varun Chakaravarthy to the national squad for the upcoming three-match ODI series against England set to begin from 6th Feb.
Varun was seen training with the Indian team in Nagpur on Tuesday. However, he isn’t included in the Champions Trophy 202 squad, which includes four spinners. His national call-up for the ODI side comes at the back of a stellar recent run in the shortest format of the game.
He had an amazing IPL 2024 season with 21 wickets for KKR. On the back of his IPL performance, he solidified his spot in the T20I side. After that, he continued his dream form in the international circuit as well. He won the player of the series award against England in the recently concluded T20I series. In the five-match series, he proved to be a bowler who tormented opposition batters.
Ex-cricketers like R Ashwin and Dinesh Karthik have been advocating for his inclusion in the Champions Trophy squad. Kuldeep Yadav is the frontline spinner for India in the Champions Trophy. The team also includes all-rounders like Ravindra Jadeja, Axar Patel, and Washington Sundar.
Apart from this, Sanju Samson has been sidelined for at least six weeks after injuring his left index finger in the final T20I against England. Sanju had an abysmal tournament and scored only 51 runs in five matches. England bowlers targeted him with a short ball consistently to keep him at bay. He is expected to be fully fit by the time of IPL 2025 where he will lead Rajasthan Royals once again.