Home / Sports / Spinner's Masterclass: Varun Chakaravarthy Outsmarts Fakhar Zaman in Tense Asia Cup Clash
Spinner's Masterclass: Varun Chakaravarthy Outsmarts Fakhar Zaman in Tense Asia Cup Clash
28 Sep
Summary
- Varun Chakaravarthy dismisses well-set Fakhar Zaman in Asia Cup final
- Pakistan collapse after Zaman's dismissal, lose 2 more wickets to Indian spinners
- Chakaravarthy bowls tight spell, conceding only 5 runs in his opening powerplay over
On Sunday, September 28, 2025, Indian spinner Varun Chakaravarthy delivered a masterful performance in the Asia Cup final against Pakistan at the Dubai International Stadium. With Pakistan batting first after being put in, veteran opener Fakhar Zaman was looking set to anchor the innings, having scored 46 runs off 35 deliveries. However, Chakaravarthy's guile and smart bowling proved to be Zaman's undoing.
After being pinned down by the Indian spin trio of Tilak Varma and Kuldeep Yadav, Zaman attempted to take down Chakaravarthy in the 15th over. The batter struck a mighty six over long-on, but the mystery spinner was quick to adjust his length, pitching the next delivery outside Zaman's hitting arc. Sensing Pakistan's need for momentum, Zaman could not resist trying a massive heave, but failed to middle the shot, leading to a comfortable catch for Kuldeep Yadav at point.
Zaman's dismissal triggered a Pakistan collapse, as they lost two more wickets to the Indian spinners, slipping to 133-6 in the 17th over. Chakaravarthy had earlier delivered India's first breakthrough in the 10th over, dismissing the in-form Sahibzada Farhan. The spinner was also impressive in his previous outings against Pakistan in the Asia Cup, returning tight figures of 1-24 and 0-25.
