Varun Chakaravarthy and a season of being "all right"

In Arrested Development, there's a running gag about bad news delivered as "he's going to be alright." When Buster loses his left hand to a seal, the doctor reassures the family before clarifying: "He's lost his left hand, so he's going to be all right."

That sums up Varun Chakaravarthy's IPL season. Literally, his injuries have been on the left side, leaving him "all right." In cricketing terms, it's been a season removed from his usual standards.

He fractured a finger on his left hand before the tournament began. Then another on the same hand while taking Abhishek Sharma's catch in KKR's first home game. Just as he found rhythm after missing matches, a straight drive from Ishan Kishan crashed into his left boot, fracturing his toe.

Information stayed vague: "Sore foot," "niggle injury," talk of "courage" from the captain and coaching staff. The lack of clarity brought noise—questions about his handling, even suggestions the BCCI was unhappy. Secretary Devajit Saikia said franchises "do take care of injuries" with the board "monitoring" workloads.

It was only on the eve of the final league match that head coach Abhishek Nayar revealed Varun had been playing with a toe fracture.

"Well, I think the more I say will be less," Nayar said. "He's broken quite a few limbs in this tournament. Before that, two fingers and now his toe. The toughest characters learn to go past pain and adversity. He doesn't seem like a tough character when you speak to him but internally he's highly motivated."

Varun has missed three matches. Since fracturing his toe on May 3, he has limped through spells, practice, onto and off buses. He's been restricted to short third and short fine, positions demanding less between deliveries. Some games he finishes his four overs and is subbed out immediately.

During a strategic timeout against MI, Varun stood with Nayar away from the huddle, the coach with an arm around him after a heavy collision with Angkrish Raghuvanshi. Varun still had an over left. He bowled it and effected a run out.

"He's been a franchise player, an integral part," Nayar said. "He's very emotional when it comes to this team. That's the thought behind him wanting to do it. Sometimes players aren't keen, but he's been very keen for the love of the city and franchise."

The injuries have run alongside inconsistent returns. He arrived a T20 World Cup winner, but that tournament wasn't straightforward either. The IPL began with aggressive batters hitting him through the line. It took four matches for his first wicket, then came ten wickets in four games and two Player of the Match awards.

Three of those came against Rajasthan Royals in Kolkata, turning around KKR's season after six winless matches. "I am very tough on myself. If I don't do well, I go and pinpoint what is not there," he said.

On the eve of KKR's final league match against DC, he was at Eden Gardens, pushing through pain. He began with a short run-up before a long net session with Ramandeep Singh and Tejasvi Dahiya. By 7:30 PM, he paused to tips to a net bowler, shared a laugh pointing to his toe, then walked slowly. The limp remains.

That's not what "all right" looks like, but it's been enough this season.