India vs England: Varun Chakravarthy in doubt for T20Is
What's the story
The availability of wrist-spinner Varun Chakravarthy for the upcoming T20I series against England is under a cloud.
It is understood that the 29-year-old hasn't done well on the new fitness benchmark set for Indian players.
The benchmark requires a player to either complete a 2-km run in 8.5 minutes or score 17.1 in the Yo-Yo test.
Here is more.
Chakravarthy
Chakravarthy earned his maiden call-up for Australia tour
Chakravarthy earned his maiden call-up to the Indian T20I squad for the Australian tour on the back of his impressive IPL performances.
He picked up 17 scalps from 13 matches at 20.94, including the only five-for of the 2020 edition.
However, he was later replaced by left-arm pacer T Natarajan due to injury.
Thereafter, he headed to the National Cricket Academy (NCA) for recovery.
Do you know?
Chakravarthy's mystery spin headlined the IPL 2020
During the IPL 2020, Chakravarthy's mystery spin was hailed by several experts. In the game against Delhi Capitals, he became the second bowler after Sunil Narine to take a five-for for KKR. He registered bowling figures of 5/20.
Problem
Chakravarthy is still struggling with his running
After nearly three months at the NCA, Chakravarthy is still training with the Kolkata Knight Riders team in Mumbai.
At the NCA, he had to work on his inability to throw, a problem that made him miss the Australian tour.
Although he has improved on his strength and conditioning after rehabilitation programme, his running has apparently become a problem.
Information
He was named in Team India's squad for England T20Is
In a huge relief for Chakravarthy, the leg-spinner was added to India's squad for the five-match T20I series against England along with the uncapped Rahul Tewatia. However, fitness woes could still mar the plight of the former.
Selection
Chakravarthy wasn't considered for the ongoing Vijay Hazare Trophy
It is interesting to note that Chakravarthy, who could soon make his international debut, has not been considered for the ongoing Vijay Hazare Trophy by Tamil Nadu selectors.
The Tamil Nadu Cricket Association (TNCA) secretary S Ramasamy recently explained that Chakravarthy is deemed only as a T20I specialist.
He was not picked for the Syed Mushtaq Ali T20 tournament either.