Indian cricketer Varun Chakaravarthy has etched his name in the record books by taking a five-wicket haul against New Zealand during the Champions Trophy 2025 match in Dubai.

After receiving the player of the match award, Chakaravarthy stated that he “felt nervous” at the game’s start due to the importance of the contest. But his teammates helped the bowler, and “there was no looking back for him.”

He returned to the national side with figures of 5-42 as India beat New Zealand by 44 runs on Sunday to set up a semi-final clash with Australia in the Champions Trophy.

India won all three of their group matches to top Group A and will play the first semi-final of the 50-over tournament in Dubai on Tuesday.

India are playing all their matches at the Dubai International Stadium after they refused to tour hosts Pakistan, citing security concerns.

He said: “I was nervous in the initial stages of the match, but after bowling a few deliveries, I became confident. Virat, Rohit, Hardik, and Shreyas kept talking to me to calm down my nerves, and it helped me.”

While speaking about the bowling track, the spin bowler said that it was not a rank-turner, but there was “something” for spinners if balls were put in the right areas. It was assisting the slow bowlers, he added.

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Chakaravarthy credited his fellow bowlers for the team’s victory. “The way Kuldeep bowled, Jadeja bowled, and Axar bowled, and even the pace bowlers, it was a total team effort.”

When asked about when he learned he would be playing or not, the bowler explained that he found out the night before. He mentioned that while he was “excited” and had been anticipating the chance to represent his country, he also felt a “bit nervous” about the upcoming game.

Chakravarthy cut short Will Young’s innings on 22 when he bowled him with a googly.