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Former Indian spinner Ravi Ashwin has heaped praise on Indian opening batter Abhishek Sharma and mystery spinner Varun Chakravarthy for having a standout calendar year 2025 in the shortest format of the game.
Speaking on his YouTube channel, Ashwin has termed Varun as India’s standout bowler of the year, terming him an MVP, emerging as the team’s X-factor whenever he turned up for the national side.
"I will pick Varun Chakravarthy as India's bowler of the year. He was a huge MVP. Whenever the team used him, he showed that X-factor. People have found it hard to pick him. His fortunes will be very key to India's chances at the 2026 T20 World Cup as well. Secondly, he is a T20 bowler," Ashwin said on his YouTube channel, Ash ki Baat.
For the unversed, Varun has pocketed 10 wickets in four ODIs and 36 wickets in 20 T20Is, emerging as one of India's dependable wicket-takers in the shortest format of the game.
"He was out of the side, then he reinvented himself and came back, and now he is at the top of the T20I rankings. He was an architect, cricket was not his first profession. He started mystery bowling, bowled in the fifth division in Chennai, then asked for a chance in net bowling, came back and bowled well and showed all the scouts how he bowled in the TNPL (Tamil Nadu Premier League). It has been a journey to remember," he added.
"From an Indian perspective, Varun Chakravarthy is the bowler of the year for me," he stated.
Furthermore, Ashwin lauded Abhishek Sharma, who scored 859 runs in 21 T20Is in the calendar year 2025 at an average of 42.95 and a strike rate of 193.46 with a century and five half-centuries.
"It's not just the arrival of Abhishek Sharma, it's probably the arrival of India's next generation X-factor player. If there is one player who I have to name who had the best year for India in 2025, it has to be him because he has batted so well," he noted.
"He has reimagined India's powerplay batting and has been exceptional. I would love to see him in the ODI format as well. I think red-ball credentials will be worked upon. I think he will probably be the men's team player of the year," Ashwin said.
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