Something quietly disconcerting occurs to batsmen when an enigma (or mystery) spinner loses their mystique yet continues to be impossible to play against. This is where Varun Chakravarthy currently resides as of late 2025. He was once viewed as a conditional tool; he could only be used under specific conditions of pitch and league, but has since pushed himself into rarefied air atop the ICC Men’s T20I Bowler Rankings by reaching a career best rating of 818. The rating does not simply position him first among active T20I bowlers; it also places him within the top ten all-time rating list, including names that helped define generations.
Ratings Don’t Lie, But Context Matters
While ICC ratings are somewhat misleading without context, Chakravarthy’s rapid climb to the top is supported by evidence. The three straight two-wicket performances may appear limited within a format that thrives on four-wicket performances; however, the timing of wickets is far more critical in T20 cricket than the number of wickets taken. Chakravarthy has made an impression in the middle overs, where games tend to swing from drifting to decisive moments.
A 119-point advantage between Chakravarthy (1st) and Jacob Duffy (2nd), in the current T20I rankings, is notably larger than previous generations of T20I bowling rankings. This indicates that Chakravarthy has established a consistent pattern of success and is not simply a short-term anomaly. Traditionally, cricketers who achieved over 800 points for their T20 bowling – Umar Gul, Samuel Badree, and Daniel Vettori – were both strike and control bowlers. As such, Chakravarthy has earned his place among them.
Mystery Spin, Minus the Guesswork
This is the first time that Chakravarthy has had the clarity of his previous versions. Chakravarthy is no longer surprised by how batters react to him. He is now using clear plans. The variation with his speed has decreased, the length of his deliveries is now consistent, and batters are being forced to create their own opportunities through batting rather than waiting for mistakes.
At 34 years of age, this isn’t an example of a late bloomer; it is instead a delayed realisation of something that was always there. A comparable example of a player developing similarly at a similar age to Sunil Narine, though not in terms of his bowling style, but in terms of the timing of his development, is Varun Chakravarthy. Similar to how Narine’s greatest International periods came from when he stopped trying to be magical with his bowling and began to suffocate, it appears as if Varun has achieved a similar level of understanding.
India’s Bowling Depth Is Quietly Shifting
India’s T20 bowlers are not developing in isolation from each other. Arshdeep Singh’s rise to 16th spot on the all-rounder rankings after being player of the match against South Africa illustrates that India is moving toward diversity within its bowling unit as opposed to having one superstar.
The addition of the middle overs death bowler in Arshdeep provides a new angle for the Indian team to utilise when he joins with Chakravarthy, who will provide a different type of pressure at the same time. The development of new players from South Africa, including Ottneil Baartman, Lungi Ngidi, and Marco Jansen, also shows that the international T20 market is closing up.
Batting Firepower Masks the Real Advantage
Though India’s batting lineup with Abhishek Sharma and Tilak Varma both inside of the top five is an indication of good batting depth in team India, however, as history has proven at previous World Cups, a strong batting lineup does not determine if a team will be successful or qualify for the next round.
Bowling ceilings are what ultimately determine which teams receive the trophy. The Indian team’s success in Barbados at the 2024 ICC Cricket World Cup was based both on their ability to maintain control throughout an innings and create the opportunity for some destructive cricket. The fact that Chakravarthy’s recent improvement in rankings may be indicative that India is continuing to pursue this philosophy of maintaining control as opposed to abandoning it.
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