“Gauti Bhai has helped me a lot in my comeback” - Varun Chakravarthy reveals Gautam Gambhir’s role in his Team India comeback

Indian spinner Varun Chakravarthy has opened up on how the Indian head coach Gautam Gambhir has always backed and motivated him, adding that he brings a warrior mindset to the dressing room, which worked for the Indian team at the ICC Champions Trophy 2025.

Notably, Varun Chakravarthy has worked with Gambhir when he was with the Indian Premier League team, Kolkata Knight Riders, as a mentor when they went on to win the IPL 2024 title after defeating the Sunrisers Hyderabad in the grand finale.

Interestingly, Varun was left out of the team after the Indian team’s poor outing in the T20 World Cup in 2021, after they lost to their arch-rivals Pakistan quite badly. However, Varun constantly worked on his bowling skills and variations and made a strong comeback later in 2024.

"Gauti Bhai has helped me a lot in my comeback, the way he motivates me. Even if we talk little, he has always given me good confidence and he has always told that "no matter who's going to ignore you, I will keep you in my plans for now". So, that kind of gave me confidence. And if you ask about Gauti Bhai as a mentor, then I would say he brings in a warrior mindset in the dressing room, which is very important and has worked for us at KKR and in the Champions Trophy," Chakravarthy told RevSportz.

A few years later, in 2024, Varun made his T20I comeback against Bangladesh, emerging as the leading wicket-taker since his comeback. He has scalped 31 wickets from 12 innings at an average of 11.25 and an economy of 7.58 since his comeback to the national team.

Moreover, he also played a crucial role in India’s successful run at the ICC Champions Trophy 2025 in Dubai as India went on to defeat New Zealand in the grand finale. Also, Chakravarthy heaped praise on Suryakumar Yadav’s captaincy, stating that his leadership qualities are similar to Rohit Sharma's.

"You give everything you have and it does not matter whether you win or you lose. And about Surya, he is someone very similar to Rohit Sharma - that is what I've seen. He is a very tactically sound, and maybe his time at MI Mumbai Indians has given him good exposure to great captains. He is a very good guy and never puts pressure on the bowlers. It would be a bowler's delight to have a captain like him," he concluded.

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