How Suryakumar Yadav and Tilak Varma are damaging India | T20 World Cup
Interestingly, in the 21 matches in which Varun and Bumrah have featured together, the spinner leads the wickets 30-22. Srikkanth said on his YouTube channel that batters are still unable to decipher Varun’s variations.“Look at the pitch maps – most of his shots are around off-stump and mid-stump. Against right-handers, the ball just leans slightly and then spins. His googly comes in sharp. Most of his wickets are good length or just short. Not even full deliveries. Even his so-called short balls are deceptive.”“People don’t know what he’s bowling. Is he googling it? Is it a straight line? Is it slower? Is it faster? Nobody knows. All of a sudden he throws one faster. Then he changes speed again. Multiple speeds. Long build-up, relaxed action – but incredibly deceptive.”“Honestly, he doesn’t get enough credit. Bumrah is fantastic. You don’t find a bowler like Bumrah easily,” Srikkanth said.Although Shivam Dube was named man of the match against Netherlands, Srikkanth felt Varun deserved it anyway.“Today, yes, Shivam Dube played blind and deserved man of the match. I’m not denying that. But if you look at Varun’s figures – three wickets for very few runs, all top-order wickets – why wasn’t he even considered a man of the match contender? Nobody even thought about it,” he said.Since returning from a disappointing start to his international career, Varun has taken 47 wickets in 27 matches in 2024 and 2025. In 2026 alone, he already has 13 wickets from seven matches. Srikkanth believes that if India lift the trophy, Varun could well be the player of the tournament.“One hundred percent (can be Player Of The Tournament). Because of consistency. Every match he plays, even on a bad day, he only gives 34 or 35 runs. For a spinner, four overs for 36 runs is perfectly acceptable in T20 cricket. But he still takes one or two wickets within that.”“Occasionally, he delivers match-winning performances. But he is not celebrated enough,” Srikkanth said.The former chief selector went a step further, calling Varun a modern-day giant of the format and comparing his current impact to what Bumrah did in T20Is a few years back.“Varun, you are a modern-day great. I’m telling you this from the bottom of my heart – not because you’re Tamil, not because you’re from Tamil Nadu or Chennai. No. Purely because of ability. Every batsman struggles. They don’t know how to face him. They don’t know whether to defend against him. They don’t know what to do.”“That’s exactly how Bumrah used to be a few years back. Bumrah is still doing great,” Srikkanth said.Varun will next feature in India’s Super 8 match against South Africa on Sunday, February 22.