"He is not bowling any bad balls" - Aakash Chopra picks Varun Chakaravarthy as his MVP for KKR's IPL 2023 win vs Punjab Kings

Aakash Chopra has lauded Varun Chakaravarthy for showing exemplary control over his deliveries in the Kolkata Knight Riders' (KKR) IPL 2023 win against the Punjab Kings (PBKS).

Chakaravarthy returned figures of 3/26 in four overs as KKR restricted PBKS to 179/7 after Shikhar Dhawan opted to bat first at the Eden Gardens in Kolkata on Monday, May 8. Nitish Rana and Co. then chased down the target with five wickets to spare off the very last delivery to register their fifth win of the tournament.

While reviewing the game in a video shared on his YouTube channel, Chopra picked Chakaravarthy as the most valuable player of the game, reasoning:

"In my opinion, the most valuable player is Varun Chakaravarthy. The guy is incredible and this year is going different for him. He won them the last match as well. He is not bowling any bad balls, there is no doubt about that."

The former Kolkata Knight Riders player praised the mystery spinner for adding a new weapon to his arsenal, explaining:

"The three wickets he took here, in that the way he got Liam Livingstone out, it is incredible. He has learned a new ball, which almost goes like a leg-spinner. He used to bowl carrom balls and googlies earlier, two types of deliveries, but he has a new addition now."

Chopra added that Chakaravarthy's ability to take the ball away from the right-handers is making him an invaluable asset for KKR, saying:

"He has started to bowl a new ball where the ball goes with revolution and turns away after pitching. The accuracy with which he is able to bowl leg-spin as well, Varun Chakaravarthy is looking like gold dust."

Chakaravarthy trapped Liam Livingstone lbw with a delivery that spun away after pitching. He then had Jitesh Sharma caught behind and castled Rishi Dhawan to complete his three-wicket haul.

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"He will definitely keep Kolkata's campaign alive if he keeps bowling like this" - Aakash Chopra on Varun Chakaravarthy

Varun Chakaravarthy is KKR's highest wicket-taker in IPL 2023. [P/C: iplt20.com]

Aakash Chopra reckons Chakaravarthy holds the key to KKR's prospects in the ongoing edition of the Indian Premier League, stating:

"He will definitely keep Kolkata's campaign alive if he keeps bowling like this. Captain Nitish Rana bowled 13 overs of spin which included one over of himself. He also picked up a wicket but the most valuable player, of course, is Varun Chakaravarthy for his three wickets."

Chakaravarthy, with 17 scalps, is the joint fourth-highest wicket-taker in IPL 2023. The Tamil Nadu spinner is only behind the trio of Mohammad Shami, Rashid Khan and Tushar Deshpande, who have accounted for 19 dismissals apiece.