'That Was Just a Poor Piece...' - Former India coach massive statement on Varun Chakaravarthy ahead of IND vs ENG T20 WC 2026 semifinal
R. Sridhar analyzed Varun Chakaravarthy’s missed run-out chance against the West Indies and said the spinner was in the right position but produced a poor piece of fielding.
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Former India fielding coach R. Sridhar spoke about Varun Chakaravarthy’s mistake during India’s Super 8 match against the West Indies. The incident happened during the first innings at Eden Gardens in Kolkata. Chakaravarthy missed a good opportunity to run out a batter. The moment caught attention because the chance looked fairly simple.
The situation unfolded in the third over of the innings. Roston Chase played a drive off Arshdeep Singh’s bowling toward the cover region. Chakaravarthy quickly moved to stop the ball. At the same time, there was confusion between Chase and non-striker Shai Hope while attempting a quick single.
Both batters ended up stranded at the same end of the pitch. Chakaravarthy only needed to throw the ball to wicketkeeper Sanju Samson to complete an easy run-out. Instead, he threw the ball to the wrong end, allowing Chase to return safely to his crease. After surviving the chance, Chase and Hope added another 55 runs for the team.
Sridhar Backs Suryakumar Yadav’s Field Placement
Despite the mistake, Sridhar did not blame Indian captain Suryakumar Yadav for placing Chakaravarthy at cover. That area usually receives many shots in T20 cricket, making it an important fielding position. Sridhar explained that the captain likely had a specific plan against the batter and bowler combination.
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"From the outside, I can question Varun’s fielding position, but perhaps against that batter and Arshdeep Singh, it was considered a safer option compared to deep square leg, deep mid-wicket, or short fine leg. Obviously, someone as sharp as Suryakumar Yadav would not make such elementary errors in positioning the wrong fielder in the wrong place," Sridhar said in an interview with Revsportz.
"Varun is also a much-improved fielder compared to earlier, but the occasion may simply have got to him. I think Varun was in the right place. That was just a poor piece of fielding," he added. Sridhar also hinted that such small mistakes in the field could become costly for India in high-pressure games like the semifinal against England at the Wankhede Stadium on March 5.
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Gopi Marisetty
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