The Indian team handed mystery spinner Varun Chakravarthy his maiden ODI cap in the 2nd game of the three-match series. Varun received his cap on Sunday, 9 February, from Ravindra Jadeja, after having a sensational T20I series against England, where he picked up 14 wickets from 5 matches.
Varun, 33 years and 164 days old, became India’s second-oldest debutant in ODIs behind legendary wicketkeeper Farokh Engineer, who had made his debut in 1974 at the age of 36 years and 138 days. Varun has steadily risen in the 50-over format and was the best spinner in the recently concluded Vijay Hazare Trophy, India’s premier 50-over competition.
Varun’s inclusion in the ODI XI is a crucial move for the Indian team as he might be fast-tracked for the Champions Trophy 2025. India are keeping Varun as one of the emergency options in case Jasprit Bumrah is not able to recover in time for the ICC tournament.
Varun was the standout bowler in the recently concluded T20I series, troubling the England batters in every single game. England were not able to figure out Varun in any of the series and lost wickets in clumps against him. On Sunday, the spinner replaced Kuldeep Yadav in the line-up, who picked up just one wicket in the first game.
Varun was not the only change India made on Sunday. The team decided to bench opener Yashasvi Jaiswal, who debuted in the last game. Virat Kohli returned to the playing XI after sitting out the first game due to a knee injury. The batter replaced Jaiswal, and is expected to bat at No.3 in the line-up with Shreyas Iyer at No.4.
England, on the other hand, made wholesale changes to their lower order. Jofra Archer, Jacob Bethell, and Brydon Carse were rested for the game. Mark Wood, Gus Atkinson, and Jamie Overton walked into the playing XI.
