'In cricket, certain things are not in our control.'
Varun Chakravarthy said he had little expectation of returning to the national side after being dropped in 2021 but credited hard work on his accuracy and variations for earning a recall to India's white-ball set-up.
The 33 year old, who has taken 33 wickets in 18 T20Is, will likely be part of India's campaign at the Asia Cup starting September 9, with the team opening against hosts UAE a day later.
Since his international return last year, Chakravarthy has taken two five-wicket hauls in T20Is and another in ODIs during India's Champions Trophy-winning run.
'It has definitely taken a long time to earn this spot,' Chakravarthy told Revsportz in an interview.
'I did not have a vision as to if I would make a comeback or not once I was dropped from the team, but I kept telling myself that if I get certain variations and accuracy levels, then I will be able to make a comeback into the team.
'That was the only motivating factor, and obviously, I had IPL as the platform to showcase whatever I was learning. I also played a lot on the domestic side, like the Syed Mushtaq Ali, Vijay Hazare Trophy and other tournaments.
'I used to travel all around India and play, which eventually gave me a lot of confidence. That was the main aspect of my comeback.'
Chakravarthy admitted he endured mental health struggles during his three years away from the squad.
'The main reason was not having clarity of whether I would ever make a return to the team. The only thing in front of me was IPL and the domestic leagues, and I am definitely grateful for having IPL, because many other cricketers don't have that as well,' he said.
The spinner said he worked relentlessly to stay ready despite repeated setbacks.
'After having good IPL seasons, I felt that I should have been in the team, but still, I was not there,' he said.
'So everything made sense when I was picked after a long time for the Bangladesh tour last year. Yes, that phase was challenging, but the only thing I had control over was going to practice at 5:30 in the morning, doing some spot bowling, and then coming back home to hit the gym in the evening.
'I kept pushing myself, and that is how it worked. Today, I would not regret any of that, because those hard times made me a better person and a better human being.'
Chakravarthy said T20 cricket demands constant evolution and bowlers need to refresh their skills regularly.
'In T20s with the white-ball, one needs to bring out a certain dimension or at least a small variation once in two years and keep evolving with proper purpose and skill levels, and not just doing something different for the sake of doing it,' he said.
'A few people just try some crazy actions, but in terms of developing a real skill with the ball, it takes a lot of time.
'Once I was away from the team post-2021, I had many variations in my mind. I had around eight variations, and I wasn't excelling in any of those, so my goal was to excel in those one by one.
'Right now, if you ask me, I have 3 to 4 balls where I am an 8 on 10. I must keep improving and I do feel that in some time, I might hit my peak ability, but let's see how things go.
'In cricket, certain things are not in our control, but still I am trying my best to keep evolving.'