"I couldn't sleep before and after my debut" - Varun Chakravarthy narrates his maiden outing with the national team
Mystery spinner Varun Chakravarthy explained his state of mind while representing India for the first time. He made his debut in the first T20I against Sri Lanka in Colombo.
The 30-year-old has earned a spot in the Indian squad for the T20 World Cup in the UAE. He is one of five spinners in the squad. Chakravarthy noted how the scenario is different while playing for the country when compared to the IPL. Speaking to Aakash Chopra on his YouTube channel, he said:
"The day after I made my debut, I could not sleep. It was surreal, I could not get over it. Had butterflies in my stomach, I could not sleep the day before my debut as well. Compared to IPL, the feel is definitely different when representing the country. I could sense I had to play with responsibility."
Chakravarthy picked up figures of 1-28 on his debut and dismissed opposition captain Dasun Shanaka as his maiden wicket. While he was not among the wickets in the three-match T20I series, he was able to keep the run flow under check and registered an economy of 5.4 in the series.
He had to clear several obstacles to don the Indian jersey. Injuries and failed fitness tests played a hurdle when he was considered for selection in the series against Australia and England.
There was a lot of pressure from home when I decided to start playing cricket again: Varun Chakravarthy
Chakravarthy shed some light into his journey, which has been an unorthodox one. He dropped his cricketing ambitions to pursue architecture, and even played a hand in the movie industry when that did not work out.
He eventually resumed playing cricket professionally in 2018. In a matter of months, he rose from a fourth division player to land a huge deal with the Kings XI Punjab in the IPL. He added:
"I did my architecture course from 2007-12, then worked at a firm for 2 years and then started my own firm. After that, I felt like doing something different. I spent a year in the movie industry like acting and direction and all that. All of that did not work for me, then I thought of playing cricket again. There was a lot of pressure from home when I decided to start playing cricket again."
Varun Chakravarthy will be seen in the second leg of the IPL with the Kolkata Knight Riders. He will remain in the UAE to train and participate in the T20 World Cup for India.