Kolkata Knight Riders head coach Abhishek Nayar has backed out-of-form Varun Chakaravarthy to bounce back in the coming matches in IPL 2026.
Nayar is confident that the mystery spinner will rediscover his form sooner than later. He said that it is another challenge in his life which he will easily overcome.
“Over the years, he’s gone through a lot of adversity. As a franchise, as a support staff, we back him. I don’t think there’s any issue,” Nayar said on the eve of KKR’s first home game against Sunrisers Hyderabad on Thursday.
“But yes, teams are playing him well. It doesn’t mean he can’t come back. It just means it’s another challenge in his life, like he’s had before.
“And we are trying and we are hoping, and in every way backing him. I hope the fans of the world do too. Whether it’s this game or in the future, it’s inevitable that he will bounce back like he has in the past.”
Chakaravarthy finished as the joint-highest wicket-taker along with Jasprit Bumrah in the T20 World Cup 2026, finishing with 14 wickets at an economy of 9.24. But his struggle started in the match against Southa Africa, which India lost by 47 runs, their only loss in the competition.
In KKR’s season opener against Mumbai Indians at the Wankhede Stadium, Rohit Sharma and Ryan Rickelton took him to the cleaners. The wrist spinner returned figures of 0 for 48 as KKR failed to defend 210 and went on to lose the match by six wickets.
But, Nayar believes that the bowler is mentally in a very good space and said: “I honestly believe mentally he’s in a very good space — actually in a better space than he’s been in previous years.
“Yes, he’s accomplished a lot over the past year, which has increased expectations. Everyone always knew Varun Chakravarthy is a terrific bowler, but the expectation has grown because of what he’s done for India.”
It may seem like the batters have figured out the mystery to Chakaravarthy’s bowling, but KKR head coach says that the team would continue to back him to deliver at crucial stages.
“At times, you want to protect a bowler and use him when he can be more effective. But the nature of the game is to put your best players in positions to perform.
“If he picks up wickets in those phases, he becomes a completely different bowler,” added Nayar.
On Sri Lankan pacer Matheesha Pathirana’s availability, Nayar said: “There’s been a lot of clarity on the dates. We’re hoping he can go through those fitness tests and the practice matches Sri Lanka Cricket has organised.
“Once those formalities are done, fingers crossed, we’ll have him with us.”
