"The main reason was not having clarity" - Team India star's huge revelation of mental health challenges ahead of 2025 Asia Cup

Mystery spinner Varun Chakaravarthy has opened up about his mental health struggles ahead of the 2025 Asia Cup. The 33-year-old made his India debut during the 2021 T20I series in Sri Lanka, where he picked up two wickets in three games.

Later that year, he represented India in the T20 World Cup but went wicketless in the three matches he played. Virat Kohli’s side endured a disappointing campaign, failing to reach the semi-finals.

Following the mega-event, Chakaravarthy was dropped from the squad and remained out of the national setup until 2024. However, since his comeback, the Tamil Nadu spinner has been outstanding, taking 31 wickets in just 12 T20Is. He was also part of India’s 2025 Champions Trophy squad.

On Monday, August 18, in a conversation with RevSportz, Chakaravarthy reflected on the mental challenges he faced during his three-year absence from the national team and how he pushed himself to make a comeback. He said:

“It’s a very good question, as not just me, but many cricketers go through mental health challenges as I did too for almost three years after I was out of the team from 2021. The main reason was not having clarity of whether I would ever make a return to the team. The only thing in front of me was IPL and the domestic leagues, and I am definitely grateful for having IPL, because many other cricketers don’t have that as well.”

“But trying to make a comeback to the Indian side was my goal, so I always used to keep thinking why I’m not there and about ways in which I can improve myself. After having good IPL seasons, I felt that I should have been in the team, but still, I was not there. So everything made sense when I was picked after a long time for the Bangladesh tour last year. Yes, that phase was challenging, but the only thing I had in my control was going to practice at 5:30 in the morning, do some spot bowling and come back home and hit the gym in the evening. I kept pushing myself and that’s how it worked. Today, I won’t regret any of that, because those hard times made me a better person and a better human being,” he added.

Overall, Chakaravarthy has represented India in 22 matches across the two white-ball formats, picking up 43 wickets at an impressive average of 15.60.

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“It has definitely taken a long time to earn this spot” - Varun Chakaravarthy on becoming India’s go-to spinner in white-ball cricket

In the same conversation, Varun Chakaravarthy also reflected on becoming one of India’s go-to spinners in white-ball cricket. He revealed that he used the IPL to develop his skills and also participated in all domestic competitions. The 33-year-old said:

“It has definitely taken a long time to earn this spot, and as I have mentioned in many other places also that this journey has been long. I didn’t have a vision as to if I would make a comeback or not once I was dropped from the team, but I kept telling myself that if I get certain variations and accuracy levels, then I will be able to make a comeback into the team.”

“That was the only motivating factor, and obviously I had IPL as the platform to showcase whatever I was learning side by side . I also played a lot on the domestic side, like Syed Mushtaq Ali, Vijay Hazare Trophy and other tournaments. I used to travel all around India and play, which eventually gave me a lot of confidence. That was the main aspect of my comeback,” he added.

Varun Chakaravarthy is next expected to take the field in the 2025 Asia Cup, scheduled to begin on September 9 in the UAE.