Harbhajan Singh reveals what makes Varun Chakravarthy a tough customer

Former Indian off-spinner Harbhajan Singh feels teams haven’t seen much of Varun Chakravarthy so far, which gives him an advantage. Chakravarthy bagged a five-wicket haul against New Zealand in the Champions Trophy clash at Dubai on Sunday.

The mystery spinner was playing only his second ODI and he returned with figures of 5-42 in his quota of 10 overs. Earlier, Chakravarthy bagged 14 wickets in five T20Is against England while playing in Indian conditions.

The Turbanator noted the Kiwis’ batters made the mistake of trying to pick Chakravarthy from length rather than picking him from his hand.

The 33-year-old spinner has all the variations under his belt and he was able to make the most of them on Sunday.

Harbhajan Singh said on India Today, “See, the magic portion is he’s not played much cricket. That is number one. People don’t know much about him, what he brings onto the table, and his arm speed is quite fast, and people are not watching his hand, which way the ball is spinning. People are trying to read him after pitching the ball, which is a very difficult thing.”

“For any batter to do that, you have to see the hand, how the spinners are bowling, and what variation it is coming towards you, rather than picking, picking it up from the length. So that’s where, you know, the New Zealanders have made that mistake, not looking at his hand. And he’s one of those bowlers, full of confidence, and he took a lot of wickets against England.”

The former spinner wants India to back four spinners against Australia in the all-important semifinal on Tuesday.

“We have seen what spinners can do on this wicket. Four spinners against Australia. I definitely feel that this should be the team going forward. Whether Australia or South Africa come in the final, whatever team you meet in the final, or even if New Zealand come in the final, the same team should be carried forward and spinners will be key,” said Harbhajan.

As per the reports, the semifinal is expected to be played on a fresh pitch.