Varun Chakravarthy ruled out of 2026 Asian Games after side strain in India-Afghanistan T20I
Varun Chakravarthy has been ruled out of the 2026 Asian Games after sustaining a side strain while bowling in the first T20I against Afghanistan in New Delhi in September. The BCCI said he felt sudden discomfort in his left lateral abdominal region during his third over and that MRI scans showed the injury is severe enough to rule him out of the tournament.
India’s preparatory build-up for the Asian Games began with a three-match T20I series against Afghanistan in September, during which Chakravarthy had been selected after recovering from an earlier injury sustained during the England T20I series. He bowled four overs without conceding a boundary in the opening game in New Delhi before experiencing the new injury and being withdrawn from the rest of the Afghanistan series.
Sports Today reported that the side strain suffered during the Afghanistan series has led to Chakravarthy being ruled out of the Asian Games. The BCCI account specified the timing of the discomfort—his third over of the first T20I—and cited MRI results in confirming the severity of the strain.
Chakravarthy’s economical spell in the opening T20I had set expectations that he would be a candidate for India’s Asian Games squad, but the fresh injury prevented further participation in the Afghanistan tour. India are the defending men’s champions at the Asian Games, having won gold in the previous edition in 2023.
Organisers schedule the Asian Games men’s cricket competition to begin on September 24, 2026, and India’s men’s team are due to play their first match on September 28. The Indian contingent is reported to be likely to travel to Japan at least a week before the start of the Games, a timeline that the report said makes a comeback for Chakravarthy impossible.
India will need to replace Chakravarthy with another wrist spinner in their Asian Games plans; Ravi Bishnoi is already part of the Indian squad travelling to Japan for the tournament. The squad composition and Bishnoi’s inclusion were noted in the reports accompanying Chakravarthy’s withdrawal.
With MRI-confirmed side strain ruling him out, Chakravarthy will not travel to Japan for the Asian Games, and India will proceed to the competition—with Bishnoi already on the traveling party—ahead of their opening match on September 28.
