Who said what - top 5 expert reactions to Varun Chakravarthy's match-winning spell in 1st IND vs ENG T20I 2025 ft. Michael Vaughan 

India spinner Varun Chakravarthy produced a match-winning performance in the first fixture of the ongoing five-match T20I series against England on Wednesday, January 22, at Eden Gardens in Kolkata. He finished as India's wrecker-in-chief with figures of 3/23 off four overs to play a key role in bundling out England for 132.

Chakravarthy dismissed Harry Brook in the eighth over, as England's vice-captain dragged the ball on to his stumps. In the same over, the 33-year-old reaped rewards for his precision, as he went past Liam Livingstone to reduce England to 65/4. In the 17th over, the spinner took the important wicket of Jos Buttler, who was looking to take the visitors past 150.

Notably, Chakravarthy made his T20I debut in 2021 and then was dropped after lackluster performances. He then made his comeback after emerging as the second-highest wicket-taker in the Indian Premier League.

On that note, let's take a look at the top expert reactions to Varun Chakravarthy's impressive performance in the first T20I.

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#1 Brad Hogg

Former Australia spinner Brad Hogg lavished praise on Varun Chakravarthy's "mystery spin" which put England under incessant pressure. He further opined that none of the England batters has the ability to play spin well apart from Jos Buttler and Phil Salt.

Here's what Hogg said on his YouTube channel:

"Varun Chakravarthy, I just love the mystery spin last night, getting Harry Brook out the way he did with the wrong-un. Brook had no idea and wasn’t too long after Livingstone, just big gap between bat and pad with another wrong-un, knew it was coming but didn’t pick it. Those two wickets were crucial and England just couldn’t recover after that."

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#2 Michael Vaughan

Former England captain Michael Vaughan appeared on Cricbuzz for the post-match analysis of the game along with host Gaurav Kapur and ex-India pacer Zaheer Khan. While praising Varun Chakravarthy's skills, Vaughan pointed out the spinner's old-fashioned kind of wicket celebration.

Further, the 50-year-old lauded Chakravarthy's consistent line-lengths, which put England batters under pressure. Here's what Michael Vaughan said on Cricbuzz.

“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."

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#3 Aakash Chopra

Renowned Hindi commentator Aakash Chopra took to his YouTube channel to hail Varun Chakrvarthy's bravery of flighting the ball in the sixth over, when the fielding restrictions were still in place. Along with pointing out his consistent line-lengths, Chopra feels Chakrvarthy is confident enough to maintain the same pace, despite getting hit for a six.

"Since the time Varun Chakaravarthy has come back, he has started bowling in the powerplay. He came and bowled the sixth over and his bowling was incredible. The thing I am liking the most is that he is bowling slow in the air. He is happy to just flight the ball," Chopra said on his YouTube channel.

"Pace is a huge marker in my opinion, because nowadays, spinners become fast as soon as they get hit and fast bowlers become slow. If a spinner bowls with confidence, he goes slow. You go slow even if you are hit for a six unless you are a Rashid Khan. His bowling style is different. He will bowl fast. However, Varun Chakaravarthy is not Rashid," Chopra added.

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#4 Sanjay Manjrekar

Former India batter Sanjay Manjrekar feels Varun Chakravarthy's triple strike helped India restrict England to a low score, which made things easy for the batters. Here's what he said on ESPNcricinfo:

"Varun Chakravarthy has to be the most effective bowler. Harry Brook was starting to look good and we know how dangerous Livingstone can be. Buttler was doing his thing of playing an anchor role and playing at a strike rate of 140-150. If Buttler had stayed throughout the innings and got to his 100, that would have been a headache for India."

"Chakravarthy ensured that there was nothing of the kind to make things difficult for the batters to chase. He got two batters bowled, which showed that he wasn't afraid of bowling that ball right up to the batters," he added.

On being asked about whether Chakravarthy seems re-energized since his comeback, Manjrekar said:

"I've always liked Varun Chakravarthy. In this team management, he feels at home and when he gets a wicket, you see a true character, the way he reacts. He is an exceptional T20 bowler and if India want a wicket-taker like Kuldeep Yadav, he is the man."

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#5 Basit Ali

Former Pakistan batter Basit Ali termed Varun Chakravarthy as "top-class" for getting past the defenses of Harry Brook and Liam Livingstone, which put England on the backfoot. Here's what he said on his YouTube channel:

"Tremendous bowling from Varun, with figures of 3/23. The way Varun bowled within the stump and uprooted batters' stumps was top-class. They must be taking him lightly, but their eyes would have now opened."