Mystery spinner Varun Chakaravarthy is out of the Japan T20I and Asian Games with a side strain. Leg-spin all-rounder Vipraj Nigam has been named his replacement, earning his maiden international call-up for the upcoming assignments.

India mystery spinner Varun Chakaravarthy has been ruled out of the one-off T20I against Japan and the Asian Games after suffering a side strain, with leg-spin all-rounder Vipraj Nigam receiving his maiden international call-up as his replacement.Chakaravarthy picked up the injury during India's opening T20I against Afghanistan in Delhi, his first international appearance after returning from a hamstring issue, according to Cricinfo. The spinner was initially ruled out of the remainder of the Afghanistan series but was expected to recover in time to travel for the Asian Games. However, the side strain has now ruled him out of both upcoming assignments.

BCCI Confirms Squad Changes

BCCI's Men's Selection Committee has named Nigam as Chakaravarthy's replacement in the Japan T20I and Asian Games squad. Nitish Kumar Reddy, who was originally part of India's Asian Games squad, has also been withdrawn and will instead be available for the three-match ODI series against the West Indies.

Who is Vipraj Nigam?

Nigam first attracted attention during IPL 2025, when he claimed 11 wickets in 14 matches for Delhi Capitals at an economy rate of 9.12. He also contributed 142 runs at a strike rate of 179.74.The 21-year-old had a quieter IPL 2026 campaign, scoring 15 runs and taking two wickets in five matches, but impressed for India A during the one-day tri-series in Sri Lanka in June. Nigam finished as India's joint-highest wicket-taker in the tournament with seven wickets from five matches and also scored 116 runs at a strike rate of 126.08.

India's Spin Options

With Chakaravarthy unavailable, Axar Patel and Ravi Bishnoi are likely to be India's first-choice spin options, with Washington Sundar and Nigam providing further alternatives. India will travel with a 14-member squad for the Japan T20I and the Asian Games. The replacement for Nitish Kumar Reddy has not yet been announced.

India's updated squad:

India's updated squad: Shreyas Iyer (C), Abhishek Sharma, Sanju Samson (WK), Ishan Kishan (WK), Shivam Dube, Tilak Varma (VC), Axar Patel, Washington Sundar, Ravi Bishnoi, Jasprit Bumrah, Arshdeep Singh, Vaibhav Sooryavanshi, Yash Thakur, Vipraj Nigam. (ANI)(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by Asianetnews Editorial staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)