“He sometimes shows a bit of panic” - Mohammad Kaif shares India’s concern ahead of semi-final clash against England

Former Indian cricketer Mohammad Kaif has expressed a slight dissatisfaction with Varun Chakravarthy’s performances of late in the ongoing ICC T20 World Cup 2026 campaign as India will take on England in the second semi-final on Thursday, March 5.

Speaking on his YouTube channel, Kaif reckoned that the majority of batters are coming prepared to attack the mystery spinner. He went on to add that Varun is showing signs of panic after being hit for runs.

“Many batters are now coming prepared, knowing exactly how to plan against him (Varun). That is where a slight problem can arise. I have noticed that when he gets hit for runs, he sometimes shows a bit of panic. You can see it in the way he reacts. Instead of sticking to his natural wicket-to-wicket length, he starts bowling at the pads,” Mohammad Kaif said on his YouTube channel.

Furthermore, Kaif suggested that Varun should focus more on bowling leg-spin, adding that all batters are waiting for his googly, which makes them to hit towards long-on and straight with full face of the bat. He went on to share that the myster spinner should focus more on leg-spin and use googly as a variation. 

“Throughout this World Cup, I feel he has bowled very little leg-spin. He can work on his leg-spin because right now batsmen are waiting for his googly. Since the ball comes into the stumps, they treat it like an off-spinner and expect it to turn inward. That is why many of them are able to hit him towards long-on and straight with a full face of the bat,” he added.

“I think Varun needs to focus more on his leg-spin as well. He can bowl outside the off-stump line with his leg-spin and then bring in the googly as a variation. If he keeps bowling only googlies, batsmen may start reading him better. Instead of targeting the pads, he can attack outside off-stump with leg-spin and then surprise them with a googly aimed at the stumps. That could be a smarter plan for Varun,” he concluded.

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