Bharat Arun backs Chakaravarthy, calls for attacking approach in final

Should Varun Chakaravarthy be dropped for the World Cup final? The jury is still out, and India's cricketing intelligentsia remains divided on the question. But someone who has worked closely with the mystery spinner believes he should be persisted with.

"No, no, no," says Bharat Arun, India's former bowling coach. "He was brilliant in the past, wasn't he? Exceptional, in fact."

India face New Zealand in the final at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad on Sunday.

The former India bowling coach, however, has a few pieces of advice for the 34-year-old spinner. "Don't get defensive by bowling wide," Bharat advises Chakaravarthy. "When you try to bowl wide, it's not working. If you analyse it, he has been effective when he's attacking the stumps. So attack the stumps."

Chakaravarthy conceded 64 runs against England in the semifinal, and Bharat points to that as well "He might as well attack. He's not going to give away more than 64 runs anyway. But at least he will have an opportunity to get a wicket. That's what I'm saying."

He is also against the idea of Kuldeep Yadav replacing Chakaravarthy in the final.

"Somebody should talk to him and tell him, 'Varun, you stick to your strength. Don't deviate from that. Your strength is attacking the wicket.' Most of his victims, if you analyse it, are either LBW or bowled. What does that mean? It means he's attacking the stumps. Why move away from that? One odd ball bowled wide is okay, but not when you're moving away from the stumps. He's trying to escape, and that's not going to work."

Bharat then draws a comparison with boxing. "It's like a boxing match. When you go into the ring saying, 'I don't want to get hit,' you'll end up taking the maximum number of hits. When you say, 'I want to knock this guy out, I want to punch,' you may still get hit, but at least you'll land two or three good punches on him. Isn't it? It's a mindset thing. It's the same with bowling as well. If you try to escape, you'll get hit more. Whereas when I try to attack you, I may still get hit, but I may at least get a wicket, which will set them back.

"Against England, he got Jos Buttler. He could have got another because they were trying to hit, they were desperate. When you keep hitting the stumps, okay, they may hit one six, two sixes, but the third one they are bound to miss, no? Then you win - they get out. This is something that has to be drilled into him. You look at those matches where he has given away runs. Just rewind and see. You only have to watch those 24 balls. Look at those 24 balls - before being hit and after being hit. You'll know the answer."

Chakaravarthy has 13 wickets in the tournament with an economy rate of 8.85, compared to his T20I career economy of 7.45. In the IPL, he has an economy rate of 7.58 across 84 matches, with 100 wickets.

The veteran coach also lauded Jasprit Bumrah's brilliance and versatility.

"I think Bumrah has made a difference. He has bailed out India time and again with his brilliance."

Bumrah rescued India from a potentially difficult situation against England with a series of toe-crushing yorkers. With Harry Brook's side needing 45 off the final three overs, Bumrah conceded only six runs in the 18th over, ensuring India still had 39 runs to defend across the last two overs.

"Others also need to chip in," says the Chennai-based Bharat. "Otherwise India becomes predictable. If you look at Arshdeep (Singh), he's bowling only wide yorkers. It's okay to bowl wide yorkers, but you should also mix them up with stump yorkers.

"Because wide yorkers allow the batters to free their arms. Whereas stump yorkers, if you can execute them well, the batter would not have that liberty. And when you mix wide yorkers with stump yorkers, there is always an element of doubt in the batter's mind. Now they know what you're going to bowl. But it becomes much more difficult for them if your execution of stump yorkers is perfect.

"Even if they know, very few batters can dig it out. So that has been the difference. That day (against England), Bumrah's execution was outstanding. The yorkers were spot on. When they were amassing runs, he's the one who brought India back into the game. That over he bowled, giving just six runs when they needed 15 (an over) - that was the biggest turning point. That is what execution is."

He adds that the key lies in either execution or uncertainty. "In this game, either you execute really well or you keep the batter guessing. The minute you start going defensive, the batter also knows he has won the battle."

Overall, how does he rate India's bowling in this World Cup?

"Well, I would say the Indian bowling attack, in terms of potential, has been great. But when they have been challenged, it has been very tough for them. Very few have risen to the occasion. Bumrah, of course, has been exceptional.

"When they are really under the hammer, they look short of ideas. When the going is good, it looks fantastic. But when they are under pressure, they seem to run out of ideas. They should stick to their strengths. Challenge the batter with your strengths.

"In Mumbai, the pitch was a belter of a wicket, fantastic for batting. But on the same pitch, look at how Bumrah bowled - they simply couldn't hit him. In this game, either you execute really well or you keep the batter guessing. The minute you start going defensive, the batter also knows he has won the battle."