{"id":11318,"date":"2026-05-21T09:12:52","date_gmt":"2026-05-21T09:12:52","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/1win.za.com\/ipl\/watson-varun-chakaravarthy-bowls-through-pain-to-keep-kkr-playoff-hopes-alive"},"modified":"2026-05-21T09:12:52","modified_gmt":"2026-05-21T09:12:52","slug":"watson-varun-chakaravarthy-bowls-through-pain-to-keep-kkr-playoff-hopes-alive","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/1win.za.com\/ipl\/watson-varun-chakaravarthy-bowls-through-pain-to-keep-kkr-playoff-hopes-alive","title":{"rendered":"Watson: Varun Chakaravarthy bowls through pain to keep KKR playoff hopes alive"},"content":{"rendered":"

Kolkata Knight Riders assistant coach Shane Watson hailed mystery spinner Varun Chakaravarthy after KKR\u2019s win over Mumbai Indians, revealing that the 32-year-old is currently playing through pain. Watson said Chakaravarthy has been bowling despite a hairline fracture in his left foot, underscoring the franchise\u2019s belief in his commitment as the season gathered momentum.<\/p>\n

Injury timeline and Watson\u2019s comments<\/h2>\n
    \n
  1. Watson praised Chakaravarthy\u2019s courage, noting that while he is not fully sure how far along the spinner is in his recovery, he can clearly see the player is \u201cplaying through a bit of pain\u201d.<\/li>\n
  2. Chakaravarthy sustained the hairline fracture while fielding during KKR\u2019s away match against Delhi Capitals on May 8.<\/li>\n
  3. He then missed KKR\u2019s next fixture against Royal Challengers Bengaluru on May 13.<\/li>\n
  4. After KKR\u2019s loss to RCB, Chakaravarthy returned for the following games against Gujarat Titans and Mumbai Indians, though he was not at full fitness.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

    Following the win versus MI, Watson explained what the injury situation meant for the spinner\u2019s mindset and performance. He said it reflects both bravery and desire\u2014Chakaravarthy wants to be available to contribute for KKR\u2014and added that despite the discomfort, he was still delivering quality with the ball.<\/p>\n

    Form dip, then a late resurgence<\/h2>\n

    Watson also pointed to Chakaravarthy\u2019s struggles since the T20 World Cup. In the opening stretch of the IPL season, the spinner picked up no wickets in his first three matches while conceding 105 runs.<\/p>\n

    However, the pattern changed in the later phase. Chakaravarthy\u2019s impact became a major factor in KKR\u2019s resurgence, taking 10 wickets across four matches as the team found its rhythm in the business end of games.<\/p>\n

    Watson described the turnaround as \u201cbrilliant\u201d, contrasting Chakaravarthy\u2019s earlier-season form with the steady influence he has been able to create match after match. He also highlighted how fortunate KKR are to have a bowler with both the skillset and the hunger to play, stating that Chakaravarthy\u2019s desperation to contribute has been evident throughout this phase.<\/p>\n

    In a further show of admiration, Watson added that given the pain Chakaravarthy was managing, he could have opted to step away and rest. Instead, the spinner stayed in the mix and continued to perform, which Watson said made the difference.<\/p>\n

    Watson concluded by acknowledging the game\u2019s context as well, mentioning an unfortunate collision involving Angkrish Raghuvanshi. Despite that, he felt Chakaravarthy still delivered strongly, expressing gratitude for what the spinner continues to bring to KKR.<\/p>\n

    Why KKR still rely on him<\/h2>\n

    Even with the turnaround, Chakaravarthy\u2019s current returns have not perfectly matched the dominant form he has shown in the past. Earlier in the season, he struggled to find his rhythm and often looked less dangerous than usual, with batters appearing more prepared for his variations and his economy rate rising sharply.<\/p>\n

    Eventually, the recovery to form arrived: his control returned and he rediscovered his wicket-taking threat. Even now, while the numbers may not fully reflect his peak influence, he remains central to KKR\u2019s bowling plans\u2014particularly because his ability to break partnerships and apply pressure alongside Sunil Narine is part of the team\u2019s core bowling identity.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

    Kolkata Knight Riders assistant coach Shane Watson hailed mystery spinner Varun Chakaravarthy after KKR\u2019s win over Mumbai Indians, revealing that the 32-year-old is currently playing…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":11317,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_yoast_wpseo_title":"IPL News: Watson Praises Varun Chakaravarthy Injury Fight","_yoast_wpseo_metadesc":"Shane Watson reveals Varun Chakaravarthy is bowling through a hairline fracture, as KKR\u2019s win over MI keeps playoff hopes on track.","footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-11318","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-ipl"],"yoast_head":"\nIPL News: Watson Praises Varun Chakaravarthy Injury Fight<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Shane Watson reveals Varun Chakaravarthy is bowling through a hairline fracture, as KKR\u2019s win over MI keeps playoff hopes on track.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/1win.za.com\/ipl\/watson-varun-chakaravarthy-bowls-through-pain-to-keep-kkr-playoff-hopes-alive\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"IPL News: Watson Praises Varun Chakaravarthy Injury Fight\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Shane Watson reveals Varun Chakaravarthy is bowling through a hairline fracture, as KKR\u2019s win over MI keeps playoff hopes on track.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/1win.za.com\/ipl\/watson-varun-chakaravarthy-bowls-through-pain-to-keep-kkr-playoff-hopes-alive\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"1Win India\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2026-05-21T09:12:52+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/1win.za.com\/ipl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/varun-chakaravarthy-playing-through-pain-58b2.webp\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"513\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"291\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/webp\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Arjun Patel\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Arjun Patel\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"3 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/1win.za.com\\\/ipl\\\/watson-varun-chakaravarthy-bowls-through-pain-to-keep-kkr-playoff-hopes-alive#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/1win.za.com\\\/ipl\\\/watson-varun-chakaravarthy-bowls-through-pain-to-keep-kkr-playoff-hopes-alive\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"Arjun Patel\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/1win.za.com\\\/ipl\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/9aac810730409fd3131f08f34023f33e\"},\"headline\":\"Watson: Varun Chakaravarthy bowls through pain to keep KKR playoff hopes alive\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-05-21T09:12:52+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/1win.za.com\\\/ipl\\\/watson-varun-chakaravarthy-bowls-through-pain-to-keep-kkr-playoff-hopes-alive\"},\"wordCount\":538,\"commentCount\":0,\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/1win.za.com\\\/ipl\\\/watson-varun-chakaravarthy-bowls-through-pain-to-keep-kkr-playoff-hopes-alive#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/1win.za.com\\\/ipl\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/05\\\/varun-chakaravarthy-playing-through-pain-58b2.webp\",\"articleSection\":[\"IPL\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/1win.za.com\\\/ipl\\\/watson-varun-chakaravarthy-bowls-through-pain-to-keep-kkr-playoff-hopes-alive#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/1win.za.com\\\/ipl\\\/watson-varun-chakaravarthy-bowls-through-pain-to-keep-kkr-playoff-hopes-alive\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/1win.za.com\\\/ipl\\\/watson-varun-chakaravarthy-bowls-through-pain-to-keep-kkr-playoff-hopes-alive\",\"name\":\"IPL News: Watson Praises Varun Chakaravarthy Injury Fight\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/1win.za.com\\\/ipl\\\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/1win.za.com\\\/ipl\\\/watson-varun-chakaravarthy-bowls-through-pain-to-keep-kkr-playoff-hopes-alive#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/1win.za.com\\\/ipl\\\/watson-varun-chakaravarthy-bowls-through-pain-to-keep-kkr-playoff-hopes-alive#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/1win.za.com\\\/ipl\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/05\\\/varun-chakaravarthy-playing-through-pain-58b2.webp\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-05-21T09:12:52+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/1win.za.com\\\/ipl\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/9aac810730409fd3131f08f34023f33e\"},\"description\":\"Shane Watson reveals Varun Chakaravarthy is bowling through a hairline fracture, as KKR\u2019s win over MI keeps playoff hopes on track.\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/1win.za.com\\\/ipl\\\/watson-varun-chakaravarthy-bowls-through-pain-to-keep-kkr-playoff-hopes-alive#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/1win.za.com\\\/ipl\\\/watson-varun-chakaravarthy-bowls-through-pain-to-keep-kkr-playoff-hopes-alive\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/1win.za.com\\\/ipl\\\/watson-varun-chakaravarthy-bowls-through-pain-to-keep-kkr-playoff-hopes-alive#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/1win.za.com\\\/ipl\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/05\\\/varun-chakaravarthy-playing-through-pain-58b2.webp\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/1win.za.com\\\/ipl\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/05\\\/varun-chakaravarthy-playing-through-pain-58b2.webp\",\"width\":513,\"height\":291},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/1win.za.com\\\/ipl\\\/watson-varun-chakaravarthy-bowls-through-pain-to-keep-kkr-playoff-hopes-alive#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\\\/\\\/1win.za.com\\\/ipl\\\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Watson: Varun Chakaravarthy bowls through pain to keep KKR playoff hopes alive\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/1win.za.com\\\/ipl\\\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/1win.za.com\\\/ipl\\\/\",\"name\":\"1Win India\",\"description\":\"\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\\\/\\\/1win.za.com\\\/ipl\\\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/1win.za.com\\\/ipl\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/9aac810730409fd3131f08f34023f33e\",\"name\":\"Arjun Patel\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/3f44e79409232be03c88b435f2c295c5262fa91dfa5e23870d29241063bbaf5d?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/3f44e79409232be03c88b435f2c295c5262fa91dfa5e23870d29241063bbaf5d?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/3f44e79409232be03c88b435f2c295c5262fa91dfa5e23870d29241063bbaf5d?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"Arjun Patel\"},\"description\":\"Cricket analyst and sports writer with over 10 years of experience covering international and domestic matches. Specializes in match predictions, player performance analysis, and data-driven insights, with a strong focus on the Indian Premier League\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/1win.za.com\\\/ipl\\\/author\\\/arjunpatel\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"IPL News: Watson Praises Varun Chakaravarthy Injury Fight","description":"Shane Watson reveals Varun Chakaravarthy is bowling through a hairline fracture, as KKR\u2019s win over MI keeps playoff hopes on track.","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/1win.za.com\/ipl\/watson-varun-chakaravarthy-bowls-through-pain-to-keep-kkr-playoff-hopes-alive","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"IPL News: Watson Praises Varun Chakaravarthy Injury Fight","og_description":"Shane Watson reveals Varun Chakaravarthy is bowling through a hairline fracture, as KKR\u2019s win over MI keeps playoff hopes on track.","og_url":"https:\/\/1win.za.com\/ipl\/watson-varun-chakaravarthy-bowls-through-pain-to-keep-kkr-playoff-hopes-alive","og_site_name":"1Win India","article_published_time":"2026-05-21T09:12:52+00:00","og_image":[{"width":513,"height":291,"url":"https:\/\/1win.za.com\/ipl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/varun-chakaravarthy-playing-through-pain-58b2.webp","type":"image\/webp"}],"author":"Arjun Patel","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"Arjun Patel","Est. reading time":"3 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/1win.za.com\/ipl\/watson-varun-chakaravarthy-bowls-through-pain-to-keep-kkr-playoff-hopes-alive#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/1win.za.com\/ipl\/watson-varun-chakaravarthy-bowls-through-pain-to-keep-kkr-playoff-hopes-alive"},"author":{"name":"Arjun Patel","@id":"https:\/\/1win.za.com\/ipl\/#\/schema\/person\/9aac810730409fd3131f08f34023f33e"},"headline":"Watson: Varun Chakaravarthy bowls through pain to keep KKR playoff hopes alive","datePublished":"2026-05-21T09:12:52+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/1win.za.com\/ipl\/watson-varun-chakaravarthy-bowls-through-pain-to-keep-kkr-playoff-hopes-alive"},"wordCount":538,"commentCount":0,"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/1win.za.com\/ipl\/watson-varun-chakaravarthy-bowls-through-pain-to-keep-kkr-playoff-hopes-alive#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/1win.za.com\/ipl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/varun-chakaravarthy-playing-through-pain-58b2.webp","articleSection":["IPL"],"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"CommentAction","name":"Comment","target":["https:\/\/1win.za.com\/ipl\/watson-varun-chakaravarthy-bowls-through-pain-to-keep-kkr-playoff-hopes-alive#respond"]}]},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/1win.za.com\/ipl\/watson-varun-chakaravarthy-bowls-through-pain-to-keep-kkr-playoff-hopes-alive","url":"https:\/\/1win.za.com\/ipl\/watson-varun-chakaravarthy-bowls-through-pain-to-keep-kkr-playoff-hopes-alive","name":"IPL News: Watson Praises Varun Chakaravarthy Injury Fight","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/1win.za.com\/ipl\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/1win.za.com\/ipl\/watson-varun-chakaravarthy-bowls-through-pain-to-keep-kkr-playoff-hopes-alive#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/1win.za.com\/ipl\/watson-varun-chakaravarthy-bowls-through-pain-to-keep-kkr-playoff-hopes-alive#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/1win.za.com\/ipl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/varun-chakaravarthy-playing-through-pain-58b2.webp","datePublished":"2026-05-21T09:12:52+00:00","author":{"@id":"https:\/\/1win.za.com\/ipl\/#\/schema\/person\/9aac810730409fd3131f08f34023f33e"},"description":"Shane Watson reveals Varun Chakaravarthy is bowling through a hairline fracture, as KKR\u2019s win over MI keeps playoff hopes on track.","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/1win.za.com\/ipl\/watson-varun-chakaravarthy-bowls-through-pain-to-keep-kkr-playoff-hopes-alive#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/1win.za.com\/ipl\/watson-varun-chakaravarthy-bowls-through-pain-to-keep-kkr-playoff-hopes-alive"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/1win.za.com\/ipl\/watson-varun-chakaravarthy-bowls-through-pain-to-keep-kkr-playoff-hopes-alive#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/1win.za.com\/ipl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/varun-chakaravarthy-playing-through-pain-58b2.webp","contentUrl":"https:\/\/1win.za.com\/ipl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/varun-chakaravarthy-playing-through-pain-58b2.webp","width":513,"height":291},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/1win.za.com\/ipl\/watson-varun-chakaravarthy-bowls-through-pain-to-keep-kkr-playoff-hopes-alive#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/1win.za.com\/ipl\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Watson: Varun Chakaravarthy bowls through pain to keep KKR playoff hopes alive"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/1win.za.com\/ipl\/#website","url":"https:\/\/1win.za.com\/ipl\/","name":"1Win India","description":"","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/1win.za.com\/ipl\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/1win.za.com\/ipl\/#\/schema\/person\/9aac810730409fd3131f08f34023f33e","name":"Arjun Patel","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/3f44e79409232be03c88b435f2c295c5262fa91dfa5e23870d29241063bbaf5d?s=96&d=mm&r=g","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/3f44e79409232be03c88b435f2c295c5262fa91dfa5e23870d29241063bbaf5d?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/3f44e79409232be03c88b435f2c295c5262fa91dfa5e23870d29241063bbaf5d?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"Arjun Patel"},"description":"Cricket analyst and sports writer with over 10 years of experience covering international and domestic matches. Specializes in match predictions, player performance analysis, and data-driven insights, with a strong focus on the Indian Premier League","url":"https:\/\/1win.za.com\/ipl\/author\/arjunpatel"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/1win.za.com\/ipl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/11318","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/1win.za.com\/ipl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/1win.za.com\/ipl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/1win.za.com\/ipl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/1win.za.com\/ipl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=11318"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/1win.za.com\/ipl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/11318\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/1win.za.com\/ipl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/11317"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/1win.za.com\/ipl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=11318"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/1win.za.com\/ipl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=11318"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/1win.za.com\/ipl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=11318"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}