Varun Chakaravarthy’s spin threat is on hold just as India settled into this Afghanistan series. He felt sudden discomfort in his side while bowling his third over of the series opener, and scans have confirmed a strain serious enough to rule him out of the next two matches. Ravi Bishnoi replaces him in the XI, and his place at the Asian Games now looks doubtful too. India still leads the series after that opening win, but the spin attack must find fresh answers before it ends.
Scans Confirm a Side Strain Setback
Chakaravarthy pulled up with sudden discomfort in his left lateral abdominal region while bowling his third over of the series opener. Scans taken soon after confirmed a side strain, and the diagnosis was severe enough for the team management to rule him out of the remaining two matches on September 15 and September 17.
A BCCI source went further, suggesting Chakaravarthy now looks unlikely for the Asian Games as well as the rest of this series. Captain Shreyas Iyer confirmed the fallout at the toss for the second T20I, naming Ravi Bishnoi as the direct replacement in the XI.
This is not Chakaravarthy’s first fitness setback this year. He had only recently returned from a hamstring injury picked up during the third T20I against England in July, which kept him out of the entire Zimbabwe tour, and he also carried a hairline fracture in his left foot through IPL 2026 with Kolkata Knight Riders. The recurrence leaves selectors with a tricky workload puzzle heading into the bigger tournaments ahead.
Afghanistan T20I Series Varun Chakaravarthy Injury
Before the scare, Chakaravarthy had started the series exactly the way India wanted. He returned figures of 1 for 16 from his four overs in the series opener, at an economy of exactly 4.00, as India cruised to a seven-wicket win.
That form fits a wider pattern from the T20 World Cup, where he finished with 14 wickets, joint highest in the tournament alongside Jasprit Bumrah. The group stage was excellent, with 9 wickets in 4 games at an economy of 6.88. The Super 8 stage was rougher, with just 4 wickets at an economy of 10.16, and the semi-final against England produced figures of 1 for 64, his most expensive T20I spell at the time.
His IPL 2026 season with Kolkata Knight Riders was similarly modest, with 11 wickets from 11 matches at an average of 32.73 and an economy of 8.78, best figures of 3 for 14. Even so, his overall career numbers remain elite, with 75 wickets at an average of 14.29 and a best of 5 for 9 in T20 internationals.
Bishnoi Steps In as Spin Cover
Bishnoi walks into the XI on the back of a modest run in his last assignment. Across three matches against Zimbabwe in July, he took a single wicket in each game and finished with figures of 68 runs from 12 overs for the series, an economy of roughly 5.67. His IPL 2026 season with Rajasthan Royals read better: 11 wickets in 9 matches at an economy of 9.88, with a best of 4 for 41 against Gujarat Titans, and he became the youngest Indian to reach 200 T20 wickets during that same season.
Axar Patel offers proven cover too, going for 1 for 27 in his allotted overs during the series opener. Washington Sundar remains further back in the picture, since he was named in the squad only subject to fitness clearance from the BCCI Centre of Excellence and did not feature in the first match.
Remaining Fixtures Loom Large for India
The second T20I goes ahead on September 15 at the Arun Jaitley Stadium in New Delhi, with the third following at the same venue on September 17. Both games are scheduled for a 7:30 PM start, and India go into them 1-0 up after their seven-wicket win in the opener.
With the Afghanistan T20I series, Varun Chakaravarthy’s injury is now the defining storyline of this week, both remaining games double as an audition for whoever fills the spin void. Bishnoi gets the platform to state his case, Axar carries the experience, and how India manages the combination could shape their bowling plans well beyond this series.