India’s training session in Ahmedabad, a day before the T20 World Cup final, had an interesting twist. Varun Chakravarthy, who is usually the first to hit the nets, stood in the background while the rest of the Indian team trained as usual ahead of the summit clash against New Zealand.
In place of Varun, Kuldeep Yadav stormed the wrist nets early and worked up a sweat in practice just a day before the India vs India T20 World Cup final. New Zealand in Ahmedabad.
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The world number one in T20I, Varun has been in woeful form in this tournament. Since the Super 8s match against South Africa, the mystery spinner has scored at least nine runs in every game.
Varun recorded the worst figures of his T20I career in the semi-final against England where he conceded 64 runs in four overs in return for just one wicket. Varun has looked under pressure since the South Africa match where the batsmen took advantage of his short bowling, went deep into the crease and hit big shots against him.
The slump in confidence also affected India, which was reflected in the semi-final where they narrowly escaped defeat thanks to two sensational death overs by Jasprit Bumrah.
In an interview with India Today, former Indian cricketer Sunil Gavaskar claimed that Kuldeep Yadav could be the right choice for the game. Kuldeep has played only one match in this T20 World Cup and that was against Pakistan in Colombo where he recorded figures of 1/14 in three overs.
“The change I would consider would be to bring in Kuldeep Yadav. Varun Chakravarthy’s confidence seems shaken at the moment. He has struggled and conceded a lot of runs since the Super Eight stage when he faced stronger teams,” Gavaskar said before the match.
“On a pitch like Narendra Modi Stadium with big boundaries, Kuldeep Yadav could be a good option as he can spin the ball even on a flat surface,” he added. Kuldeep Yadav trains in front of Varun Chakravarthy in Ahmedabad. (PTI Photo)
WILL INDIA LET ABHISHEK SHARMA GO?
India are unlikely to make any further changes to their playing XI. However, there is a school of thought which suggests that India should open with Ishan Kishan and Sanju Samson and Abhishek Sharma should give up. Many suggested that Rinku Singh should be drafted into the playing XI instead of the off-the-ball Abhishek, who has only a fifty in the tournament.
A day before the game in Ahmedabad, Abhishek Sharma took extended practice against the spinners. The left-hander is constantly plagued by slow pitchers in the power play. In Ahmedabad, Abhishek was first dismissed by Dutchman Aryan Dutt, whose skipper rattled the stumps, and in the next match against South Africa, Abhishek succumbed to a slower delivery from Marc Jansen.
However, given the kind of confidence that Suryakumar Yadav showed in the opening over, India are unlikely to tamper with this combination.
INDIA PREDICTED PLAYING XI Vs. NT
Abhishek Sharma, Sanju Samson, Ishan Kishan, Suryakumar Yadav, Tilak Varma, Shivam Dube, Hardik Pandya, Axar Patel, Varun Chakravarthy/Kuldeep Yadav, Jasprit Bumrah
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Issued by:
Kingshuk Kusari
Published on:
07 March 2026 21:52 IST
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