Kolkata Knight Riders’ Varun Chakravarthy.
Credit: PTI
Mumbai: Mystery spinner Varun Chakravarthy has likened Gautam Gambhir to Spartan and said the India head coach has instilled in the team a mentality that leaves no room for mediocrity and where losing is not an option.
Chakravarthy, who has worked with Gambhir at Kolkata Knight Riders, on Tuesday spoke about the former India opener's approach when it comes to coaching the national side.
"I have already worked with him in the IPL and we won that (in 2024), so (there is) nothing new to me because I have already been around him," Chakravarthy told reporters on the sidelines of the CEAT Cricket Rating awards here.
"But definitely one thing which I can say about him is he brings a Spartan mentality to the team where there is no option of losing, you just have to bring (out) your best and give everything on the ground and later on, whatever happens, happens.
"When he is around, there is no mediocrity, you can't be mediocre in the field, that's what I feel," he added.
Chakravarthy said being labelled a "mystery spinner" is a term coined by the media and he does not think himself as one.
"I have never called myself a mystery bowler. It's the media that has termed me (a mystery spinner). But, whatever it is, if you want to call me a mystery (spinner), it's fine," he said.
"But it's just that I have the ability to bowl all the deliveries with the same grip and same release point. That's what is making others find it tough to pick me," Chakravarthy said.
Talking about the controversy-marred Asia Cup which India won but returned home without the players getting neither their medals nor the trophy, Chakravarthy said the team was focussed on remaining unbeaten and made it a point to cut outside noise.
"We do plan before the match itself and before that (final) we had played the opponent (Pakistan) two times, so we had a fair idea of what their plans could be and what they will come up with, and we also had our own plans and we did well," Chakravarthy said.
"I don't know about others but our primary goal when we landed there was to win the cup only, not to look at other things. Our focus was always to win the cup and win against all the sides and go unbeaten in the tournament so that we can feel more stronger (going into) the (T20) World Cup."
"If you ask me, what I saw is almost all the players switched off their social media accounts (and) only when they had to post something after the match they just came (on it). But none of them actually, (also) because we were in another country, maybe I don't know how it was there in India at that time, but in UAE it was just all quiet," he said.
Chakravarthy said bowling in tandem with Kuldeep Yadav has been a lovely experience and it has worked well for both spinners.
"We complement each other because I bowl at the speeds of (around) 95 km per hour and he bowls around 85 km per hour, so we kind of complement each other," he said.
"He has more revs and more turn, I have more speed and bounce, so till now it's been working well for us. Hopefully, we can do the same thing what we have been doing in the (T20) World Cup also," Chakravarthy added.
Going back to the time he made his comeback in the Indian side, Chakravarthy credited Gambhir and T20 skipper Suryakumar Yadav for instilling confidence in him and giving him a specific role.
"When I made my comeback, Surya and GG (Gautam Gambhir), they told me that we are looking at you as one of the wicket-takers for the Indian team and they have backed me throughout. For that, I have to give them the credit," he said.
"I was out of the team for more than three years, but I did have a consecutive good IPL (seasons). For them to recognise that and bring me in the team, was great for me."
"My role is to take wickets, keep attacking the stumps and nothing else. Take up the tougher job as in bowl in the powerplay, bowl one over in the death and two overs in the middle -- that's the role that they have given and I'm happy to do that," Chakravarthy added.
The 34-year-old Chakravarthy revealed he has been asked by Gambhir to improve his batting in terms of pushing his case for ODI selection.
"Basically, the conversations (have been) around bowling longer spells because in T20Is, you maximum bowl two overs back-to-back. But in ODIs, you have to bowl five to six overs back to back, which I did work on and I was able to do it in the Champions Trophy," he said.
"Definitely, he wants me to bat a little more up the order in domestic circuit and improve on my batting," he added.