Varun Chakaravarthy shared his dream T20 XI on Ravichandran Ashwin’s YouTube podcast, Kutti Stories With Ash and he’s got a good understanding of the game. His choices, like not including Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli might surprise some but shows his smarts in T20 cricket.
Varun’s team has strong batting and varied bowling, so no team can dominate in any situation.
Imagine Jos Buttler and Travis Head opening – they can tear apart any bowling on their day. Then having Suryakumar Yadav at number three is a smart move that can change the way T20 is played. His all-round game makes it hard for bowlers to get away with anything.
Then come power hitters Nicholas Pooran and Heinrich Klaasen, and Andre Russell and Hardik Pandya to finish it off. This team can score a lot of runs and scare even the best bowlers.
But the best part of this team is the bowling. Varun has got some of the most skilled bowlers around. Jasprit Bumrah’s yorkers and Sunil Narine’s spin will make it hard for batsmen to score. Rashid Khan as the second spinner gives the team an edge.
Russell and Pandya can also bowl well and add flexibility and depth. Matheesha Pathirana from Sri Lanka is good at bowling at the end of the innings.
Varun’s XI is perfect for modern T20 cricket. Eight batsmen who can hit boundaries, four bowlers who can take wickets and some amazing fielders.
Only one small issue is that the team might be too aggressive. Without someone to hold the innings together, the team might collapse if the top order fails. But with so much power, maybe caution isn’t needed.
Varun’s choices shows he’s a smart tactician. Teams should consider him for their strategies when he decides to retire from playing.
Varun Chakaravarthy Dream T20 XI:
Travis Head, Jos Buttler, Suryakumar Yadav, Nicholas Pooran, Heinrich Klaasen, Andre Russel, Hardik Pandya, Rashid Khan, Sunil Narine, Jasprit Bumrah, Matheesha Pathirana.
VARUN CHAKARAVARTHY PICKS HIS DREAM T20 11 🥶
— Johns. (@CricCrazyJohns) June 30, 2025
[Rule – Players he has played with] pic.twitter.com/TaMwAYtuw9
