Karthik questions Chakravarthy's continued T20I omission after India reach 300th match
Karthik says Chakravarthy faces selection barriers due to India's eight-batter setup.
Dinesh Karthik said Varun Chakravarthy will find it hard to break into India's T20I XI unless the team changes its batting depth. Chakravarthy was again left out of the second T20I against New Zealand at Hagley Oval on October 24, with Prince Yadav replacing the injured Mayank Yadav.
Karthik told Cricbuzz he would have preferred Chakravarthy but acknowledged the quality of the two changes made. India reached their 300th men's T20I during the match, remaining second behind Pakistan's 304 appearances, and need one more win to become the first side to record 200 outright victories.
Axar Patel bowled four overs for 28 runs in the second T20I after conceding 51 in the series opener. Aakash Chopra separately questioned why India did not play an extra specialist spinner on a used surface with big boundaries.
CricHubb Take
India's preference for batting depth over an extra specialist spinner has now been questioned by two former players within 48 hours, suggesting the current balance is under genuine scrutiny rather than settled policy.