Follow UsVarun Chakravarthy credited Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy (SMAT) for his superb comeback to the Indian T20I set-up, even comparing India’s domestic T20 competition to the Indian Premier League (IPL).
Chakravarthy, who only picked up two wickets in his first six T20Is for India, has been in phenomenal form since making his comeback. In his last eight T20Is, the mystery spinner has claimed 20 wickets at an average of 11.7 and an economy rate of 7.3.
Even in the first T20I against England in Kolkata, Chakravarthy took three wickets for 23 runs in his four overs and was named Player of the Match. The 33-year-old first dismissed Harry Brook and Liam Livingstone in the space of one over and then got rid of England captain Jos Buttler to help India dismiss England for 132.
“Definitely the level of cricket in domestic cricket is very high. I would say almost on par with IPL and the other international matches we play,” he said ahead of the second T20I against England in Chennai.
“I would really suggest everyone play to SMAT because we play on small grounds, and it is very challenging, and even I find it very tough. So it has definitely helped me be more instinctive and to be on my toes and think correctly at the right moment.”
India won the first game by seven wickets with 43 deliveries to spare and the action now shifts to Chennai, where Chakravarthy has played a lot of cricket. However, this is the first time he will be playing at his home ground Chepauk in Indian colours. “Back in Chennai and in Blues is very important for me. Playing for my country in front of my parents and the home crowd. It is very special for me.”
Talking about his role in the T20I team, the spinner added, “No, nothing as specific. My role is to just be aggressive and be brave and keep bowling at the stumps. That has been my role. There is no added responsibility. GG (Gautam Gambhir) and Surya (Suryakumar Yadav) make sure that there is no external stress on the players. They keep the external noise away."
And, how does he prepare for a game?
"The first thing begins with preparation, looking at the batsmen's video and what are their early shots and what shots they are looking to play. Have they added a new shot in their book? Definitely, I do that research. Based on that and based on the pitch, certain pitches, certain shots work and certain shots don't work. Based on that, I have a certain calculation in my mind and I work around that.
"I do spend a lot of time in planning and that keeps me on my toes. I keep seeing the most latest matches the batsmen have played. If they have added any shot to their game, are they accessing any new areas in the field? Based on that, I do put in a lot of volume in my practice. Normally, I practice a bowl around 2 hours a day."