In a big development, World No. 2 T20I bowler Varun Chakravarthyhas been ruled out of India’s squad for the upcoming two-match T20I series against Ireland
in Ireland.
He was originally named in the 15-man squad for this crucial away series, but since he has failed to recover from his toe injury, Chakravarthy has been released from Ireland series. The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) provided a crucial update on his rehab and recovery at the COE, Bengaluru. Meanwhile, they did not name any replacement for him.
“Varun Chakravarthy is in the final stages of his rehab at the BCCI COE following his left foot injury sustained in the TATA IPL 2026. He is ruled out of the T20I series against Ireland,” the statement read.
Since his debut for India in the 2021 T20 World Cup, the mystery spinner from Chennai has been an instrumental figure in India's white ball cricket, winning two ICC trophies, namely ICC Champions Trophy 2025 and T20 World Cup 2026.
The 34-year-old reportedly suffered an injury during Indian Premier League (2026) playing for Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR). During a match against Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) when he was struck by a ball, which resulted in hairline fracture in his left toe. Despite the injury, he was seen participating in the league for the three-time IPL champions, which reportedly angered the BCCI, with him being an integral part of India’s white ball plans.
When asked about the issue, KKR captain Ajinkya Rahane gave an explanation saying that KKR physios are in touch with the BCCI physios.
“See, our team’s physios and the physios of BCCI and the Indian team, there was a discussion among them. I don’t get involved in that at all. That’s their department. My department is how’s the player’s mindset, does the player want to play or not, how big is the risk?” Rahane was quoted as saying Firstpost.
India’s updated squad for Ireland T20Is:
Shreyas Iyer (Captain), Abhishek Sharma, Sanju Samson (WK), Ishan Kishan (WK), Shivam Dube, Tilak Varma (Vice-Captain), Nitish Kumar Reddy, Axar Patel, Washington Sundar, Ravi Bishnoi, Harshit Rana, Arshdeep Singh, Prince Yadav, Vaibhav Sooryavanshi, Prasidh Krishna
