Ahmedabad, February 19 – India’s mystery spinner Varun Chakravarthy was named the Player of the Match after delivering a decisive performance in the last group stage match of the 2026 T20 World Cup against the Netherlands at the Narendra Modi Stadium on Wednesday.
Chakravarthy returned with impressive figures of 3-14 in his three overs, playing a crucial role in India’s 17-run victory. Defending a score of 194, India restricted the Netherlands to 176/7 in their 20 overs to secure their fourth consecutive win in the group stage.
Team India's strength and conditioning coach, Adrian Le Roux, presented the medal to Chakravarthy in the dressing room.
Reflecting on his performance and the upcoming matches, Chakravarthy said, “The real tournament begins with the next match. We need to be prepared for it.”
Chakravarthy dismissed Max O'Dowd and Colin Ackermann before dismissing Aryan Dutt for a duck, effectively halting the Netherlands' progress at crucial moments. His disciplined bowling ensured that the required run rate kept increasing despite a late fightback from the opposition.
Varun has been in excellent form in the ongoing tournament. The spinner has taken nine wickets in the four matches and has been the highest wicket-taker for India so far.
Earlier, India opted to bat after winning the toss but suffered early setbacks as Abhishek Sharma was out for a duck and Ishan Kishan scored 18. Tilak Varma (31 off 27) and Suryakumar Yadav (34 off 28) found it difficult to accelerate in the middle overs.
The innings was revived by a powerful knock from Shivam Dube, who smashed 66, including four boundaries and six sixes. Hardik Pandya added a brisk 30 off 21 balls, striking three sixes, to guide India to a competitive total of 193/5.
Unbeaten India is placed in a tough group in the Super 8s. The defending champions will face South Africa, the West Indies, and Zimbabwe in the next round.
