Who is Varun Chakaravarthy? A 33-year-old, Varun Chakravarthy was born on August 29, 1991, in Bidar, Karnataka, India. He is an Indian international cricketer who is known for his unconventional leg-spin bowling style, which earned him the ‘mystery spinner’ title. He is the epitome of persistence and resilience and has become one of the rising faces of Indian cricket. As India gears up for the ICC Champions Trophy 2025 final, Varun's input will be indispensable, considering his recent performance against New Zealand.
Varun Chakaravarthy's Early Life and Education
Varun's early life was a perfect blend of cricket and studies. He grew up in Adyar, Chennai, where he studied at Kendriya Vidyalaya CLRI and later St Patrick's Anglo Indian Higher Secondary School. At first, he played cricket as a wicket-keeper but shifted his interest to studies and went on to study for a Bachelor's degree in Architecture at SRM University. However, After his short stint as an architect, Varun came back to cricket at the age of 25, switching from a pace bowler to a spinner after suffering from a knee injury in 2017.
Varun Chakaravarthy In Champion's Trophy Final (Image Credit: Jagran English)
Varun Chakaravarthy's Family
Varun's family is multi-cultural, his father, Vinod Chakravarthy is an ITS officer for BSNL and belongs to Tamil and Malayali origin. On the other hand, his mother, Malini, belongs to Karnataka. Varun also has a wife to whom he tied the knot on December 11, 2020, in Chennai. His wife’s name is Neha Khedekar.
Recommended For You
Varun Chakaravarthy's Cricket Career:
Varun's cricketing career skyrocketed in the year 2018 during the Tamil Nadu Premier League (TNPL), where he represented the Siechem Madurai Panthers and was a prominent reason for the team’s first championship. His dazzling performance in TNPL attracted attention from talent spotters all over the country. He was a part of Tamil Nadu for his List A debut in the 2018-19 Vijay Hazare Trophy, being the top wicket-taker with 22 wickets from nine games.
During Varun’s IPL career, he was originally purchased by Kings XI Punjab in the Indian Premier League (IPL) for ₹8.4 crore in 2019 but appeared in only a single match because of his bad injury. He was later picked by SRK’s Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) in 2020, where he was an important contributor and became famous for his seven bowling types: off-break, leg break, googly, carrom ball, slider, flipper, and top spinner.
Later on, the mystery spinner played his T20I debut for India in July 2021 against Sri Lanka and also represented India in the 2021 T20 World Cup. In February 2025, he played his ODI debut against England and was the second oldest Indian player to make an ODI debut after Farookh Engineer.
Varun Chakaravarthy In IPL (Image Credit: Instagram)
Varun Chakaravarthy’s Recent Performances and ICC Champions Trophy 2025
Varun is catapulting his career with one after another impressive performances. His most notable performance was in the IPL. From 2023 to 2024, he made key contributions to KKR by taking 20 and 21 wickets, respectively. Now, during the India vs New Zealand semi-finale match, he gave 42 runs and took 5 Wickets on his Champions Trophy debut. It is his adaptation and growth as a bowler that will play a crucial role for India at the ICC Champions Trophy 2025 finale.
With India gearing up for the finale of the tournament, Varun's talent is much needed. However, his spot in the final lineup is still not confirmed. Meanwhile, let’s take a look at the performance of the current spinners in the Champion’s Trophy:
Spinners in the Champion Trophy 2025 (Image Credit: Jagran English)
Read Also: Top 10 Richest Cricket Boards In The World And Their Net Worth: BCCI, Cricket Australia And More