Varun Chakaravarthy's cricketing career has been nothing but a drama-filled comeback. From being stumped in the 2021 T20 World Cup to emerging as India's X-factor in the Champions Trophy, the spinner has made the turnaround of his life in spectacular style.
In the just-concluded eight-team tournament, he featured in three matches and took nine wickets, playing a pivotal role in India's championship win.
Now, at 33, Varun has opened up about the "dark phase" he endured after the T20 World Cup, revealing that he received threatening calls warning him not to return to India.
For those unfamiliar, Varun earned his spot in India's T20 World Cup squad in 2021 following an impressive IPL season. But his campaign abroad was not as good as one could have hoped—he went without a single wicket and was involved in India's embarrassing 10-wicket loss to arch-rivals Pakistan. Reflecting on that difficult time, Varun confessed that he went into depression, failing to deal with the disappointment of not meeting expectations. He also divulged that after coming back to India on several occasions, people followed him on motorcycles to his residence.
"It was an dark period in my life. I was in depression because I felt I was not performing despite being selected to the World Cup with so much hype. I felt regret over not getting a single wicket. For the next three years, I did not get the selection. Hence, I believe the comeback into the team was more challenging compared to the road to my debut," Varun said to Gobinath in a YouTube interview.
"Post the 2021 World Cup, I used to get threat calls. People told me, 'Don't come to India. If you attempt to, you won't be able to.' People chased my home and traced me, and sometimes I used to hide. When I was coming back from the airport, some people trailed me on bikes. It happens. I can imagine fans are emotional," he added.
'I Had to Change a Lot About Myself'
Varun, who picked up a five-wicket haul against New Zealand in the Champions Trophy group stages, conceded that he had to drastically alter his game after the 2021 failure. Looking to do better, he modified his daily training schedule and put in more hours of practice.
In the semi-final against Australia and the final against New Zealand, he took two wickets in both the matches. Interestingly, in the final, he gave the all-important breakthrough by sending Will Young back when the Kiwis were on their way to a massive total.
"I had to alter a lot of things about myself (post-2021). I had to alter my routine, practice. Previously, I practiced 50 balls in a session. I doubled it. Without even knowing if the selectors would remember me, it was tough. After the third year, I felt it was all over. We won the IPL and then I received the call—I was extremely happy after that," said Varun.
"I don't believe that good things are happening all at once. I want to take it a notch higher. I have encountered setbacks and have experienced how bad the critic can be. But looking back at those and the accolades coming my way now, I am content," he added.
Recently, former India spinner Ravichandran Ashwin opined that Varun ought to have been awarded Player of the Tournament, pointing out that his performance had the greatest influence in India's winning campaign.
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