"Even James Bond is unable to solve the mystery" Chakravarthy" - Fans react to Varun Chakravarthy's dazzling 5-fer in IND vs ENG 2025 3rd T20I

Team India's mystery spinner Varun Chakravarthy bowled a terrific spell in the third T20I against England at the Niranjan Shah Stadium in Rajkot on Tuesday, January 28. The 33-year-old ran through the visiting team's batting lineup, bagging his second five-wicket haul in T20Is.

The Men in Blue won the toss and chose to field first. England were off to an impressive start, courtesy of opener Ben Duckett's quickfire 51-run knock. Duckett formed a stunning 76-run partnership for the second wicket alongside skipper Jos Butter.

Chakravarthy provided his side with a massive breakthrough, breaking the stand by sending back Buttler in the ninth over. The crafty spinner later dismissed Jamie Smith, Jamie Overton, Brydon Carse, and Jofra Archer to bag a five-wicket haul.

He finished with wonderful bowling figures of 4-0-24-5, becoming the second Indian bowler to pick multiple five-wicket hauls in T20Is after Kuldeep Yadav.

Varun Chakravarthy earned widespread praise on social media for his performance in Rajkot.

Here are some of the top reactions:

Several fans pointed out how the English batters have looked clueless against Chakravarthy's spin bowling so far in the series.

"Varun Chakravarthy is literally Unplayable for England batters.5/24 in this flat pitch vs Bazball and 10wickets already in 3 games of this series. We have our No.1 spinner for T20iwc 2026," remarked a fan.

"HERO VARUN CHAKRAVARTY England batting blows away in Chakravarthy storm ...!!!!," commented another.

"Varun Chakraborty just rattled England at Rajkot! It looks like the England batters can swing the bat but don’t quite know how to read the ball," chimed in yet another.

With 10 wickets in three outings, Varun Chakravarthy is currently the leading wicket-taker in the five-match series. He was the Player of the Match in the series opener at Eden Gardens in Kolkata, picking up three wickets. The Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) bowler claimed two scalps in the subsequent fixture in Chennai.

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"England have got to find a different method of trying to put him under pressure" - Brad Hogg on Varun Chakravarthy

Varun Chakravarthy stole the show with his bowling exploits in the T20I series opener against England. Following India's seven-wicket win in the encounter, former Australia spinner Brad Hogg reserved high praise for Chakravarthy.

Hogg opined that the English batters need to find a way to put pressure on the spinner. In a video shared on his YouTube channel, the cricketer-turned-commentator said:

"Chakravarthy is a lovely mystery spinner – kind of brings the ball back into the right-handers. Every now and again, he will just hold one up. He’s not a huge spinner of the ball, but just does enough, which makes it very difficult – always brings the stumps into play. He is very consistent and also very smart. England have got to find a different method of trying to put him under pressure."

The ongoing third T20I is a must-win clash for England. A win here would give India an unassailable 3-0 lead in the five-match series.