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Varun Chakravarthy, the Kolkata Knight Riders spinner, has not been picked for the KKR playing XI against RCB, as he has picked up a niggle since the last game. KKR have hence decided to hand a debut to a young pacer.
The Kolkata Knight Riders have elevated themselves to a new position after having won four matches in a row this season. The Knight Riders are in a must-win situation and need to win all games from here to fancy their chances of getting into the playoffs.
Why has Varun Chakravarthy been dropped by KKR against RCB?
Kolkata Knight Riders might be needing their spinners on a top show at the Raipur stadium. However, it was clear that despite being slow, the pitch did not offer much to spinners in the last game between RCB and MI.
Ajinkya Rahane, the KKR captain, revealed at the toss that the star Knight Riders spinner Varun Chakravarthy has been ruled out from the clash due to a niggle that made him struggle for the last few games. He was spotted with crutches during KKR's practice sessions.
"Varun Chakravarthy misses out, unfortunately, with a niggle injury. Saurabh Dubey comes in in place of him," said the KKR skipper.
Who is Saurabh Dubey, the Vidarbha pacer making his debut for KKR?
Kolkata Knight Riders still decided to not hand a chance to the likes of Daksh Kamra or Umran Malik in this season of the IPL, despite Varun Chakravarthy being ruled out of the crucial match against the Royal Challengers Bengaluru.
The paceman Saurabh Dubey, who plays for Vidarbha in the domestic circuit, is not a renowned pacer, and he last played a List A and a T20 match for his state side back in the 2022-23 season. Having not played a single game over the past three seasons, picking him for such a crucial game seems very lame.
Despite being 28 years old, he has just represented them in 8 matches and has picked 16 wickets while being wicketless in the T20 format despite having played 3 matches.
Can KKR hold onto their winning streak without Varun Chakravarthy?
Kolkata Knight Riders will have to hold onto their winning streak this season in order to finalize their entry into the knockouts of the season. The Ajinkya Rahane-led side have been extraordinary with the ball in all these wins, after having made a very poor start with the ball.
The Knight Riders' management backed the youngsters, and despite Matheesha Pathirana's return, they did not disturb the balance in the XI, after they managed to win their last few games. However, one of the key aspects of his turnaround from the Knights seemed to be Varun Chakravarthy's return among wickets.
Chakravarthy picked 10 wickets across 4 games since the turnaround and has been the ace in that lineup. In his absence, Anukul Roy and Sunil Narine will have a role to play. However, as per Aaron Finch's pitch report, seamers are more likely to get help from the surface, especially after the pitch being under covers for so long.
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