“Macchaaa” - Suryakumar Yadav’s inspirational post for Varun Chakaravarthy after IND vs NZ 2025 Champions Trophy match

India’s T20I captain Suryakumar Yadav took to social media to commend spinner Varun Chakaravarthy for his remarkable performance in India’s final group-stage match against New Zealand in the 2025 Champions Trophy. The game was played on Sunday, March 2, at the Dubai International Cricket Stadium.

Asked to bat first, India posted a total of 249/9 in their 50 overs, with Shreyas Iyer leading the charge, scoring 79 off 98 balls, including four boundaries and two sixes. Matt Henry was the standout bowler for New Zealand, taking five wickets.

In response, Kane Williamson was the lone fighter for New Zealand, scoring 81 off 120 balls. However, the Indian bowlers maintained pressure and took wickets at regular intervals, ultimately dismissing the Kiwis for 205 to win by 44 runs. Varun Chakaravarthy was the star of the show for India, claiming five wickets for 42 runs in his 10-over spell.

Reacting to Varun’s brilliant performance, Suryakumar Yadav took to Instagram stories to commend the 33-year-old, writing:

“Few years ago same ground. He’s back same place and HOW, Macchaaa.”

Suryakumar Yadav’s inspirational message for Varun Chakaravarthy (Image via Instagram-@surya_14kumar)

It’s worth noting that during the 2021 T20 World Cup in the UAE and Oman, Varun Chakaravarthy played three matches in Dubai but went wicketless. After the tournament, he was dropped from the team and didn't return to the national side until 2024.

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“I did feel nervous in the initial stages” - Varun Chakaravarthy reflects on his performance against New Zealand in the 2025 Champions Trophy game

In only his second ODI, Varun Chakaravarthy made a remarkable impact, claiming a five-wicket haul to help India secure a 44-run victory over New Zealand in the 2025 Champions Trophy. During the post-match presentation, the mystery spinner admitted to feeling nervous and shared [as quoted by Cricbuzz]:

“First of all I did feel nervous in the initial stages. I have not played many matches for India in the ODI format but as the game went on I felt better. Virat, Rohit, Shreyas and Hardik were talking to me and that helped. (on when he knew he was playing this game) I found out last night."

"I was definitely expecting to play for the country but on the other side I was nervous. It was not a rank turner, but if you bowled in the right places it was giving help. The way Kuldeep, Jaddu and Axar bowled, even the pace bowlers, it was a total team effort," he added.

The Men in Blue will now take on Australia in the semi-final on Tuesday, March 4, at the Dubai International Stadium.