So, what is the secret behind Varun’s success? Basically, it comes down to sticking to simple virtues. AC Prathiban, Varun’s spin-bowling coach, has an anecdote to narrate, which rams home the point: “We used to bowl two types of leg-spin,” he told RevSportz. “One is the conventional one and the other is the unconventional one. So, we were working on the unconventional leg-spin.
“He went to a game, where at the top of his mind he felt like he had to bowl conventional leg-spin. At least a few players would say, ‘I have bowled both.’ But this guy would come back and honestly tell me, ‘I only bowled conventional leg-spin, I didn’t bowl even one unconventional leg-spin. I worked towards it, but only bowled this.’ So, he will say it directly to your face. Even if he is making some mistakes, he is ready to agree to it. And I have never seen him coming late to the sessions. I can vouch for him for anything, on the honesty part.”
Varun’s work ethic also proved to be the essence of how he upgraded his fitness levels. For a moment, let’s transport ourselves back to 2021. In the T20 World Cup played in the UAE, he couldn’t pick up a single wicket over three games. Some of the criticism levelled at Varun was unnecessary as India had to bowl second in two of those three matches, with heavy dew coming into the equation during the second innings.
The counterargument to that would be that Varun’s fitness wasn’t up to acceptable standards. The spinner took that criticism in the right spirit and, in his own training workshops, looked to work on his shortcomings. The resultant outcome made him a better cricketer. “He has worked a lot on his batting and fielding,” said Prathiban. “It is not only about his batting, but it is a net impact. That is the positive thing I see. Earlier, he might get a bit tired at the end of the innings. Now, you are very sure that he can come and bowl even the 20th over with solid intensity.
“You know, as Varun is very good with his speeds, his speeds have always been on the higher side. So, to bowl 24 deliveries with solid intent is very difficult. What I feel is the speed of the run-up has been constant, it doesn’t decrease now. If you get tired, the speed of the run-up comes down, where your effectiveness with the ball is not there. Since he is strong enough, he is able to do that process for 24 deliveries. Earlier, there was a scenario, where he was running a bit slower. Now, he is stronger. That is helping him to give his 100 per cent for all those 24 deliveries.”
There is one more salient feature to touch upon – The ever-evolving bowling smarts of Varun version 3.0. The mystery spinner’s bowling isn’t just related to his numerous variations, pace on the ball, not giving the batter room to free the arms or that little bit of bounce that he extracts. It is also about how he blends his variations with subtle changes in lines and lengths. The way he went about befuddling Harry Brook in the first two T20Is, with small tweaks in his lines and lengths, serves as an example of his enviable qualities.
“Earlier, it was only side-spin, now he can bowl both over-spin and side-spin,” noted Prathiban. “Now, depending on the wicket, we have to see what kind of deliveries are going to suit that wicket. Also, depending on the batters. It is not only the side-spin or overspin, we need to have the assessment of the wicket, what does it offer to us. If it is a red-soil wicket, where you get more bounce, bowling side-spin on those wickets won’t help us a lot. What he has developed over the years is the tactical part of it. Tactically, he is very strong now, to understand his strengths and the conditions in which he is going to play.
“He doesn’t do the same things again and again, that is what makes him the mystery bowler. He has multiple options as well. I feel the credit should go to Abhishek Nayar of KKR as well for the way he has been helping him. I have also talked with those guys. Tactically, they speak about the game more often. Even for Harry Brook, he won’t pick the wickets in the same way, there would be multiple options. To do that, you need to have a higher percentage of execution of your deliveries. Your thought process and execution have to work together, so that when you tactically think about something, you get the result out of it.”
Prathiban delves deeper to give us more insights into how Varun became a master of his own art. In this case, the IPL 2023 game between Punjab Kings and KKR acts as the foundation stone to prove the hypothesis. “A couple of years back, when he started to bowl the leg-spin, he picked up a couple of wickets in the IPL – Jitesh Sharma and [Liam] Livingstone. Jitesh was caught behind and Livingstone LBW.
“That is when we felt like our process was leading us to excellence. That was the time when we started to bowl those leg-spinners. Those two wickets are very special to me. See, everybody knows Varun can pick wickets with the googly. Those two wickets will stay very high for me, Jitesh Sharma’s wicket was a leg-spinner. Liam Livingstone, it was a superb delivery, drifting in, pitching in line of the stumps and hitting the top of off stump.”
In this context, it has to be remembered that Varun now possesses two types of leg-breaks. “It is just about the release points,” said Prathiban. “There are two types in which he can release the ball: One becomes the conventional one and the other unconventional one.”
Varun has several variations. But his quest to upskill his bowling hasn’t stopped. He is trying to add a new variation to his quiver. “Yes, the flipper is in the pipeline, we are working towards it,” said his coach. “He will bowl those deliveries in a match where he would be 6/7 out of 10 (in terms of execution). He is getting closer to it. That ball is also due in the next one month or so. We won’t have much time for practice sessions because he will be going for the Champions Trophy. Post-Champions Trophy, they would have this IPL. So, the time for development hereafter would be very less. So, the minimal sessions we would do, it has to be very effective.
“He is not the (kind of person) who needs to bowl too many deliveries to get the hang of it. He is a very intelligent guy who understands what is working and what is not working. He gets into the minute details of his bowling. If you have a word with him, you will understand what detailing he goes into. From the way he holds, from the way he runs… that guy is a person of process.”
Varun has touched towering heights in the shortest format of the game. Yet, there are lingering doubts on whether he would translate that kind of success into ODIs. There is a school of thought that the batters would look to milk his bowling in the longer format. Varun, however, has a splendid record in List A cricket: 60 wickets at an average of 14.8, with 18 of them coming in the recently concluded Vijay Hazare Trophy. He also did an adequate job on his ODI debut, in some very good conditions for batting. Incidentally, Varun was a late addition to India’s squad for the Champions Trophy.
A confident Prathiban signed off with the following words: “The Indian management has picked him for his wicket-taking ability. He is one bowler who can bowl to right-handers as well as left-handers. He can turn the ball both sides. It gives the team an option to bowl against any batter, even against left-right combinations. The team’s combination will be a lot easier, when you have Varun in the team. He gives you that extra cushion.
“Of course, batsmen might take a bit of time, but even then the intent that he is going to bowl with wouldn’t change. He has the same intensity when he is bowling in a 50-over or 20-over game.”