India’s mystery spinner Varun Chakaravarthy has been ruled out of the remaining two matches of the ongoing three-T20I series against Afghanistan after sustaining a fresh injury.

The injury reportedly flared up after the first T20I at the Arun Jaitley Stadium, where Chakaravarthy delivered an exceptional, boundary-less spell of 1/16 in his 4 overs to help India secure a comfortable 7-wicket victory.

He had only recently recovered from a Grade 2 left hamstring injury sustained during the tour of England in July.

A Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) source confirmed it is a fresh injury, further putting the injury management protocols at the Centre of Excellence (CoE) under intense scrutiny.

"It is a fresh injury. MRI has revealed that it is a side strain. He is out of the series and looks unlikely for Asian Games," news agency PTI quoted the BCCI source as saying.

This latest setback also makes Chakaravarthy highly doubtful for the upcoming 2026 Asian Games in Aichi-Nagoya, slated to begin on September 19.

Varun Chakaravarthy’s injury follows pacer Harshit Rana being ruled out of the Afghanistan T20Is and the Asian Games just days prior due to a rectus femoris strain. Yash Thakur has been named as his direct replacement in both squads.

(With PTI Inputs)