Varun Chakravarthy shares Rohit, Virat and Dhoni's different approaches to game; his interactions with three legends
Oct 16, 2025

New Delhi [India], October 16 : Indian spinner Varun Chakravarthy spoke on interactions with three of India's biggest modern-day superstars, Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli and MS Dhoni and how the trio approaches the game in different ways and how they advised him on the playing field.
Chakravarthy was speaking on 'Breakfast with Champions' show with presenter Gaurav Kapur.
Speaking during the show, Varun said that while Rohit is "tactical", Virat is someone who motivates people around him and brings out their "Spartan energy". Lastly, he said that Dhoni has advised him to "do the basics right."
"When you go to Rohit Sharma, he is very tactical. He is like, try to do this. You come, bowl in with the old ball, there will be more drift and all of these things. Virat just motivates you to the core and somewhat brings that Spartan energy inside. However impossible the situation looks, just go for the kill. He brings that energy. Dhoni, all he said to me was just do the basics right. Everyone under pressure looks to do something different, something out of the blue, but just think about doing the basics, and you will get through it. Yeah. And mostly you will be successful," he said.
Speaking on the toughest batters he has bowled to, Varun said, "Chris Gayle, Virat, and, of late, Abhishek Sharma. You should tell Abhishek next time to try to be soft on the bowlers. Let him bat like this for India, not for SRH (Sunrisers Hyderabad)," he concluded.
In 24 T20Is for India, Varun has taken 40 wickets at an average of 15.60, with best figures of 5/17 and an economy rate of 6.89. He has two five-wicket hauls in T20Is. In four ODIs, he has taken 10 wickets at an average of 19.00, with a fifer to his name. He has captured the ICC Champions Trophy 2025 and the Asia Cup T20I edition 2025 with the Indian team.
The spinner is also a prolific Indian Premier League (IPL) bowler, having taken 100 wickets in 84 IPL matches at an average of 23.85, with a five-wicket haul to his name. He has also won the IPL 2024 title with Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR), taking 21 wickets in the campaign at an average of 19.14.