In his first Champions Trophy appearance, Varun Chakravarthy took five wickets to help India defeat New Zealand by 44 runs, living up to the selectors' expectations.

While captain Rohit Sharma admitted that India have a healthy headache before the semi-final, Ravi Shastri backed Varun Chakravarthy to feature in the XI for their semi-final against Australia.

Ahead of the ICC Champions Trophy 2025 semi-final, Indian captain Rohit Sharma praised mystery spinner Varun Chakravarthy for his stellar performance against New Zealand. Chakravarthy's five-wicket haul marked a significant redemption from his previous T20 World Cup struggles,