Kolkata

Kolkata Knight Riders assistant coach Shane Watson has praised spinner Varun Chakravarthy for continuing to play through pain after suffering a hairline fracture in his left foot during the ongoing IPL season.

Chakravarthy sustained the injury while fielding in KKR’s away match against Delhi Capitals on May 8. He subsequently missed the clash against Royal Challengers Bengaluru on May 13, after head coach Abhishek Nayar confirmed the fracture.

However, with KKR fighting to stay alive in the playoff race, Chakravarthy returned for matches against Gujarat Titans and Mumbai Indians despite not being fully fit.

“Well, I’m not exactly sure where he is on his rehab journey at the moment. All I do know is he’s obviously playing through a bit of pain at the moment, which just shows how brave he is, how much he wants to be here to contribute for KKR, and he’s still bowling beautifully,” Watson said after KKR’s four-wicket win over Mumbai Indians at Eden Gardens on Wednesday.

The mystery spinner had a disappointing start to the IPL season after India’s T20 World Cup triumph earlier this year. He went wicketless in his opening three matches and conceded 105 runs, which affected KKR’s early momentum.

But Chakravarthy bounced back strongly in the latter half of the tournament, taking 10 wickets in four matches and playing a key role in KKR’s resurgence.

“It’s been brilliant to see the turnaround from the first few games of the season to the impact he’s been able to consistently have every single game,” Watson said.

“We are so lucky to have someone with Varun’s skill and also his desperation to be here and want to play for KKR.”

Despite his commitment, Chakravarthy appeared to struggle physically during the last two matches, visibly hobbling in pain while bowling against Gujarat Titans and Mumbai Indians. He has gone wicketless in his last three games, conceding 47 runs against GT and 28 against MI.

Watson said the spinner could easily have opted out of the tournament because of the injury.

“With the pain that he’s managing, he could have easily just said, ‘I don’t want to be a part of this, I’m just going to go and rest it.’ So we’re very fortunate that he’s all in,” he said.

The Board of Control for Cricket in India has reportedly taken note of Chakravarthy’s injury and his decision to continue playing. BCCI secretary Devajit Saikia said the board could not interfere much while the IPL was ongoing, adding that the situation would have been different had it involved the Indian team directly.

India are scheduled to tour Ireland and England for seven T20 Internationals beginning June 26.

KKR also suffered another injury concern during the match against Mumbai Indians when wicketkeeper-batter Angkrish Raghuvanshi collided with Chakravarthy while attempting a catch.

Raghuvanshi later walked off the field and did not bat in the chase. Watson said the youngster experienced neck pain, dizziness and headache following the collision.

In difficult batting conditions at Eden Gardens, KKR chased down 149 with seven balls remaining. Veteran batter Manish Pandey, playing his first innings of the season, scored 45 off 33 balls after being promoted to number three in Raghuvanshi’s absence, while Rovman Powell contributed 40 off 30 deliveries.

Watson lauded Pandey’s form and fitness, calling it the best he had seen from the batter in recent years.

“I’ve worked with him previously at Delhi Capitals for a couple of seasons, and seeing him throughout the season, this is the best I’ve seen him bat over the last few years,” Watson said.

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He also praised Pandey’s fielding and presence in the squad, saying the experienced batter brought immense energy to the team environment both on and off the field.