Who Has Replaced Injured Varun Chakaravarthy In India’s Asian Games Squad?

India have made another change to their squad for the 2026 Asian Games, with Vipraj Nigam named as Varun Chakaravarthy’s replacement after the senior spinner was ruled out with a side strain.

Chakaravarthy suffered the injury during the opening T20I against Afghanistan in Delhi on September 14, his first international appearance after returning from a hamstring problem.

He bowled his full four-over spell and took 1/16, but subsequently reported discomfort and was withdrawn from the remaining Afghanistan matches. The setback has now ruled him out of the one-off T20I against Japan and India’s Asian Games campaign.

The replacement is 21-year-old leg-spin all-rounder Vipraj Nigam, who has earned his maiden international call-up. Nigam has been part of the Delhi Capitals setup in the IPL and has made an impact as a lower-order batter as well as a leg-spinner. The right-hander has played 19 IPL matches and taken 13 wickets, while his batting strike rate in the competition is around 176.

Why Did India Pick Vipraj Nigam?

The selection of Nigam was influenced by both availability and squad planning. According to a BCCI source quoted by PTI, Nigam and Kuldeep Yadav were the two options from the long list to replace Chakaravarthy.

Kuldeep, however, has been selected for India's upcoming three-match ODI series against the West Indies, which begins on September 27, making Nigam the available option for the Asian Games.

Nigam therefore gets an opportunity to make his international debut at one of the biggest multi-sport events in Asia. His inclusion also adds another leg-spin option to a squad that already contains Ravi Bishnoi, while Axar Patel and Washington Sundar provide further spin-bowling options. The youngster's ability to contribute with the bat gives India an additional all-round option in the T20 format.

What Else Has Changed in India’s Asian Games Squad?

Chakaravarthy's replacement is not the only alteration. Nitish Kumar Reddy has also been withdrawn from the Asian Games squad after being selected for India's ODI series against West Indies. The all-rounder was initially part of the Asian Games group but has now moved into the ODI setup.

Meanwhile, Yash Thakur replaces Harshit Rana, who was unavailable after failing to recover in time from his fitness concerns. The revised group now features Shreyas Iyer as captain, Tilak Varma as vice-captain, and players including Sanju Samson, Ishan Kishan, Abhishek Sharma, Shivam Dube, Axar Patel, Washington Sundar, Ravi Bishnoi, Jasprit Bumrah, Arshdeep Singh, Vaibhav Sooryavanshi, Yash Thakur and Vipraj Nigam.

India will face Japan in a one-off T20I on September 22, before beginning their men's Asian Games cricket campaign directly in the quarter-finals on September 28. The cricket tournament is being held in Aichi-Nagoya, Japan, with the men's final scheduled for October 3.