If India can hang on to Abhishek Sharma despite his low scores, can’t they do the same with Varun Chakravarthy? Virender Sehwag asked this question after the spinner was criticized for his performance against England in the T20 World Cup 2026 semi-final. Varun had a great start to the tournamenthe picked up nine wickets in the first four matches before things started to fall apart once the Super 8 stage began.
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Varun conceded 64 runs in four overs at the Wankhedewhich means he has given away 186 runs in the last four matches. Abhishek has also failed to impress in the T20 World Cup so far, scoring just 89 runs in seven matches, failing against England as well.
Sehwag pointed this out and said that the opener has one fifty in the last five to six innings and still got a lot of support. The Indian legend said there was no guarantee that the replacement bowler would do better than Varun.
“Even Abhishek Sharma is not doing well. So, if you are supporting him, what is the problem with supporting the bowler? It is for people to criticize. If you play a batsman who has only one fifty in the last 5-6 innings and you tell the bowler that you have given away runs in the last three games, are we looking for the replacement bowler to do well?” said Sehwag while speaking on Cricbuzz.
‘At least he got a goal’
Sehwag further defended Varun by saying that the tracks in Kolkata and Mumbai for the West Indies and England matches were flat and he did well to take the wicket.
“The beatings he (Chakravarthy) took against the West Indies and England were quite flat pitches. At least he took a wicket. There will be bowlers who just concede runs and don’t pick any wickets,” Sehwag said.
Despite his fading form, Varun is with 13 scalps to his name from 8 matches along with the highest wicket-taker in the competition.
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Published on:
March 6, 2026 1:34 PM IST
