In two sessions, one in the evening on Tuesday and one in the afternoon on Wednesday, Varun Chakaravarthy was hard at work, bowling either at one batter or a single stump. The 34-year-old, who was viewed as a reliable bowler of four overs for Suryakumar Yadav before the T20 World Cup began, has taken 12 wickets in this tournament, but half of those have come against the Netherlands and Namibia.
He has struggled against formidable sides such as South Africa and the West Indies, and faces the English challenge on the smaller boundaries of the Wankhede Stadium on Thursday.
“Just a normal routine session with Varun. He really enjoys a single-wicket practice a day before the game. We can mentally go through his process. The conversations we have had is just about clarity and for him to walk away feeling good about his bowling,” bowling coach Morne Morkel said in the pre-match press conference on Wednesday.
How a bowler responds to a difficult outing often reveals as much about his mindset as his skill. In Morkel, Chakaravarthy appears to have found someone who can guide those conversations and reinforce the confidence needed to bounce back on tougher days.
“Obviously, I can’t reveal his process. But I keep on telling him that in our bowling line-up, with the skill and the variation Varun has got, he has got the ability to take a wicket almost every ball. So if he goes for a boundary or the ball, he’s not executed as well as possible. For him, it is just to move on to the next one and make sure he commits to the next ball.”
“I think for Varun, at times, to his credit, he wants to be a big performer for the team. So he will put a bit of pressure on himself. But he’s a match winner for us,” Morkel said.
The semi-final, however, is not just about individual roles but also the conditions that could shape the contest. With the game set to be played at Wankhede, the surface and weather are likely to influence both team selection and approach.
“To be honest, we’re not quite sure a day out how the wicket is going to play. I’m pretty sure you experience walking here, it’s a lot hotter all of a sudden in India, so in terms of moisture and allowing the wicket not to dry out, I think it’s going to be key to play well”.
“Team selection will go in terms of what we see on game day. From there, we just need to be smart in our skills, reading the conditions and adapting to it.” I’ll be expecting it to be a good wicket, high-scoring game. We are preparing ourselves for tough conditions and from there we will assess. I think if we go in with a mindset that it is going to be a high-scoring game and we need to be up at the standard, I’d say that’s a good place to be at,” he said.
