New Zealand captain Mitchell Santner believes India’s enigmatic seamer Varun Chakravarthy could still be a big threat in the Men’s T20 World Cup final in Ahmedabad. Santner insisted that the spinner remains just one good game away from turning the momentum around completely.
Chakravarthy’s expensive spell against England cricket team in the semi-final expressed concern about India’s spin attack heading into the final. But spoke at the pre-match press conference in Ahmedabad, Santner made it clear that the New Zealand camp was not writing off the Indian spinner.
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“For any bowler, when the pitch is flat, it’s a challenge. When it spins or seams, it can trouble the batsmen, but on a flat surface it becomes difficult for the bowler. I think anyone can go for 60 on their day,” Santner said.
“For Varun, he has to know he’s still a very good bowler. He’s only one game away from turning the tide. It’s the same with any bowler or batsman. If you’re not in form, you’re only one game away from coming back. So it’s about going out there and proving it. It’s always a challenge, but days like that happen. When you go into a game like that, you can’t get much harder than this next game. you think about how it looks like and if you can’t do things a little differently,” he added.
HOW DID VARUN CHAKRAVARTHY PERFORM?
Varun Chakravarthy arrived at the T20 World Cup as India’s biggest X-factor. Between the previous edition and this edition, no bowler from a full member nation has taken more wickets than the mystery spinner, underscoring how central he has become to India’s white-ball plans.
The tournament started perfectly. Chakravarthy grabbed 12 wickets in four matches in the group stage, tying the batsmen down with his carrom balls and googlies while dominating the middle overs.
But the Super 8 stage proved to be more difficult. Against teams like South Africa National Cricket Team, Zimbabwe National Cricket Team and West Indies Cricket Team, the runs started flowing. His economy rate rose to 10.16 and of the 72 balls he bowled at this stage, only 20 were dot balls – a dot percentage of just 27.77.
The toughest match came in the semi-finals in Mumbai. Chakravarthy finished with 1 for 64 from four overs – the costliest spell by an Indian bowler in T20 World Cup history. England’s Jacob Bethell did most of the damage as he smashed 41 runs off just 13 balls against him.
The figures also matched the joint second-costliest spell in T20 World Cup history when Sanath Jayasuriya took 0-64 against Pakistan in Johannesburg in 2007.
WILL VARUN CHAKRAVARTHY’S INDIA OUT IN THE FINAL?
Despite the rough patch, India are unlikely to hit the panic button ahead of the final. The team has relied heavily on a balanced bowling attack throughout the tournament, with Varun Chakravarthy and Axar Patel forming the main partnership in the middle overs.
If India fancy tweaking things late, Kuldeep Yadav remains the obvious alternative. The arm-spinner has a decent record against the New Zealand national cricket team, picking up eight wickets in seven T20Is at an average of 22.6 and an economy rate of 7.5.
He also had a solid performance during the five-match T20I series between the sides in January 2026, returning figures of 2/35 and 2/39 to help India keep the visitors in check.
Still, benching Chakravarthy ahead of the World Cup final would be a bold move. India have supported him throughout the tournament and they know how quickly the mysterious machine can turn the script.
And against batsmen like Tim Seifert and Finn Allen who rarely hesitate to start early, Chakravarthy’s response after a tough run could play a big role in how the final in Ahmedabad pans out.
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Issued by:
Debodinna Chakraborty
Published on:
07 March 2026 14:37 IST
