Varun Chakravarthy had been having a pretty torrid time with ball in hand over the last two months as he struggled to maintain his typical efficiency and threat. A poor end to the T20 World Cup and a poor start to IPL 2026 had many questioning whether his best days were behind him – but by taking 3/14 against a powerful Rajasthan Royals lineup on Sunday afternoon, the Kolkata Knight Riders spinner quashed all the talk and announced that it was nothing more than a lean patch.
There were several reasons Varun had been short of 100% over the last few weeks, but a big one was revealed by the Tamil Nadu spinner as he spoke after the end of the innings. Chakravarthy revealed that he had been playing through the pain of a broken hand – a pair of finger injuries on his non-bowling left arm, that nonetheless kept him short of being at his best.
“I think we all deserved this win, even though it’s just one win, it feels very sweet. In the first few matches (of the season) I was injured, I had two fractures,” explained the spinner. “I still have two fractures in my left hand. So I’m just trying to manage that.”
Chakravarthy finally found this length, the right speed, and the purchase with all his variations that make him a threat. Having struggled to combine those factors, he has received punishment as batters managed to swing through the line and cause damage. But against RR, it was too risky for the batters, as Varun burnt through the top order with crucial wickets of Vaibhav Sooryavanshi, Dhruv Jurel, and Riyan Parag.
KKR intend for win to kickstart second-half charge
Chakravarthy explained that a slightly slower pitch, which produced the first real low-scoring thriller of the year, gave him and his teammates plenty of support. This was KKR’s first win of the season, and one they hope can kickstart the remainder of the year.
“I would say it (pitch) was a little slow, but it was perfectly suitable for us and we made the most of it,” said Varun. “And I think we could have batted a little better in the middle, but all well. Yeah, we don’t know where we’ll end up, but we are just making a statement that we are not pushovers.”
After five losses and a solitary point to start the season, KKR end their first half on a positive note. There is still plenty of quality and threat, and determination to go for the trophy hasn’t dried up yet: “We are just not coming here to participate. We are here to win every match. We are here to make a strong contention for the trophy. We still have hopes and I think we are gonna do well from this,” concluded Varun.
