‘No doubt he’s a class bowler’ – Gary Stead opens up on tackling Varun Chakravarthy ahead of Champions Trophy 2025 final

Gary Stead and Varun Chakravarthy (Source: Alex Davidson/Getty Images and Francois Nel/Getty Images)

Varun Chakravarthy has been in some sensational form in the ongoing Champions Trophy so far. Coming into the squad as an experimental replacement of Harshit Rana during India’s league phase game against New Zealand, Chakravarthy came to the fore immediately. His guile and clever variations were too hot to handle for the Kiwis. His five-wicket haul (5/42) was followed by another impressive performance in the semi-final against Australia.

New Zealand’s head coach, Gary Stead, labelled the mystery spinner a “big threat” for his side. He also shed light on it being easier to tackle the venom of Chakravarthy during the first innings rather than under lights.

“We certainly expect him to play after getting 5 for 42 against us in the last game. And yeah, we’ll be planning our, I guess, intentions around that as well. There’s no doubt he’s a class bowler. He obviously showed his skills against us last time, and he’s a big, big threat in the game. So, we’ll be putting our thinking caps on how we nullify that and how we can still score runs against him. I think when you have a wrist-spinner like that, then you’re looking for cues as a batter. And I think it’s always a little bit easier when you’re in the daylight to see those things,” told Stead, as quoted by Cricbuzz.

We’re up for that challenge of what India will bring: Stead

Stead spoke on the importance of adapting to the conditions of the pitch on the day. He also noted the significance of effective communication of the batters in the middle, and also asserted that they were ready to take on the test of the Indian spin quartet.

“The pitch that we played on in the first game was quite different to the way that the semifinal played against Australia. Again, it’ll be something we have to read on the day and adapt to what’s going on within the match. But, yeah, all our batters will have their individual plans around how they want to combat them, and then it comes down to good communication in the middle and sometimes a little bit of bravery to take those options on. So, we’re certainly up for that challenge of what India will bring, and we know that they’ve got four very capable spinners,” he concluded.

Also Read: ‘They will not bottle it, they won’t choke’ – Nasser Hussain backs New Zealand in final vs India

Sunday, March 9, will be the second time India will lock horns against the Black Caps in a final of the Champions Trophy. Understandably, the high-octane contest will be an intriguing watch for the viewers. Both sides would be aiming to notch up precious silverware under their belt.

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