{"id":2987,"date":"2026-10-27T09:39:33","date_gmt":"2026-10-27T09:39:33","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/newsraise.com\/in\/2026\/10\/27\/badrinath-urges-india-drop-sooryavanshi-chakaravarthy-third\/"},"modified":"2026-10-27T09:39:33","modified_gmt":"2026-10-27T09:39:33","slug":"badrinath-urges-india-drop-sooryavanshi-chakaravarthy-third","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/newsraise.com\/in\/2026\/10\/27\/badrinath-urges-india-drop-sooryavanshi-chakaravarthy-third\/","title":{"rendered":"Badrinath urges India to drop Sooryavanshi for Chakaravarthy in third T20I"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<!-- Quick Adsense WordPress Plugin: http:\/\/quickadsense.com\/ -->\n<div class=\"9fece8afa224fd09e54b043d0febfb58\" data-index=\"1\" style=\"float: none; margin:10px 0 10px 0; text-align:center;\">\n<script async src=\"https:\/\/pagead2.googlesyndication.com\/pagead\/js\/adsbygoogle.js\"><\/script>\r\n<!-- NR ATF -->\r\n<ins class=\"adsbygoogle\"\r\n     style=\"display:block\"\r\n     data-ad-client=\"ca-pub-8898941184964366\"\r\n     data-ad-slot=\"4839033563\"\r\n     data-ad-format=\"auto\"\r\n     data-full-width-responsive=\"true\"><\/ins>\r\n<script>\r\n     (adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({});\r\n<\/script>\n<\/div>\n<p>Former India top\u2011order batsman Subramaniam Badrinath has publicly suggested that India should recall spinner Varun Chakaravarthy for the third Twenty20 International (T20I) against New\u202fZealand, rather than continue with teenage middle\u2011order option Vaibhav Sooryavanshi at the No.\u202f3 position. Badrinath made the case in a YouTube interview on his channel \u201cCric it with Badri\u201d, arguing that a specialist bowler would better serve the side as it seeks to clinch the series in Wellington.<\/p>\n<h2>Series context and recent performances<\/h2>\n<p>India entered the third match with a 2\u20110 lead in the three\u2011game series after winning the first two encounters in New\u202fZealand. The hosts have won 18 of the 21 T20Is they have played against New\u202fZealand this decade, a record that includes the World Cup final victory in March. The second T20I, played in Wellington, saw New\u202fZealand post 181 runs, a target India chased successfully, thereby extending their series advantage.<\/p>\n<p>In the first two matches New\u202fZealand\u2019s totals were 220 and 180 respectively. Badrinath noted that those scores might have been lower \u2013 perhaps 200 and 160 \u2013 if India had fielded a bowler of Chakaravarthy\u2019s calibre instead of the current lineup.<\/p>\n<h2>Sooryavanshi\u2019s brief return and its impact<\/h2>\n<p>Vaibhav Sooryavanshi was drafted into the side for the second T20I after opening batsman Ishan Kishan was ruled out with an injury. The young player, who had missed India\u2019s previous six T20Is, was placed at No.\u202f3, a role that is unfamiliar to him. In that innings he managed four runs off eight balls, a modest contribution that Badrinath described as a struggle in an unfamiliar position.<\/p>\n<p>Despite the limited personal output, Sooryavanshi\u2019s inclusion did provide depth to the batting order, extending India\u2019s line\u2011up to the No.\u202f8 position. The depth proved useful as the team chased down the 181\u2011run target, reinforcing India\u2019s grip on the series.<\/p>\n<h2>Calls for a specialist bowler and preservation of the opening pair<\/h2>\n<p>Badrinath argued that India would benefit more from adding a specialist bowler, particularly given the lower order\u2019s recent contributions with the bat. He specifically mentioned Varun Chakaravarthy, who has been out of action for India since suffering an abdominal side strain during the previous month\u2019s T20I series against Afghanistan.<\/p>\n<p>In the same interview, Badrinath questioned the notion of moving Sanju Samson from his opening slot to accommodate Sooryavanshi. While acknowledging Sooryavanshi\u2019s success as an opener at the domestic level, Badrinath stressed that Samson is \u201cdoing brilliantly as an opener\u201d for the Rajasthan Royals and that it would be \u201cunfair\u201d to ask Samson to sacrifice his opening spot for the teenager. He emphasized that the position is more important than the individual player and that he would not disrupt Samson\u2019s role.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIt\u2019s unfair to Sanju Samson if he has to sacrifice his opening spot for Sooryavanshi. Yes, Sooryavanshi has thrived only as an opener, but Samson is doing brilliantly as an opener. Though Samson has done well for Rajasthan Royals at No.\u202f3, I think Sooryavanshi needs to wait. The position is more important than the player. I definitely will not disrupt Sanju Samson,\u201d Badrinath said.<\/p>\n<h2>Looking ahead to Wellington<\/h2>\n<p>India travels to Wellington for the third T20I with the opportunity to seal the series. The venue\u2019s conditions, including wind factors, could pose a different challenge, and India\u2019s bowling and performance against spin remain identified as areas for improvement. Bowling coach Morne Morkel has indicated that the team\u2019s performances are expected to keep progressing as the tour advances.<\/p>\n<p>A win in the third match would not only secure a 3\u20110 series sweep but also provide an early reward for India\u2019s strong start to the tour. Whether the team will heed Badrinath\u2019s suggestion and bring Chakaravarthy back into the XI, or persist with Sooryavanshi at No.\u202f3, will be decided by the team management ahead of the final encounter.<\/p>\n<p>The debate highlights the broader strategic choices facing India: balancing batting depth with bowling potency, preserving the form of established openers, and managing the development of emerging talent. As the series draws to a close, the decisions made in Wellington will shape both the immediate outcome and the longer\u2011term composition of India\u2019s T20 side.<\/p>\n\n<div style=\"font-size: 0px; height: 0px; line-height: 0px; margin: 0; padding: 0; clear: both;\"><\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Former India batsman Subramaniam Badrinath has called for Varun Chakaravarthy to replace Vaibhav Sooryavanshi in the third T20I against New Zealand, arguing the team needs a specialist bowler.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":2988,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[299],"tags":[216,3035,3348,2166,2014,3347],"class_list":["post-2987","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news","tag-india","tag-new-zealand","tag-subramaniam-badrinath","tag-t20i","tag-vaibhav-sooryavanshi","tag-varun-chakaravarthy","entry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/newsraise.com\/in\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2987","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/newsraise.com\/in\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/newsraise.com\/in\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newsraise.com\/in\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newsraise.com\/in\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2987"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/newsraise.com\/in\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2987\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newsraise.com\/in\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2988"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/newsraise.com\/in\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2987"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newsraise.com\/in\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2987"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newsraise.com\/in\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2987"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}