"When you are not in MI's XI can you be in India's 15?" - Aakash Chopra predicts possible changes to Team India's T20 World Cup team
Aakash Chopra has given his verdict on possible changes to India's 15-man squad for the upcoming T20 World Cup in light of the poor form shown by Ishan Kishan, Suraykumar Yadav and Bhuvneshwar Kumar in IPL 2021.
The cricketer-turned-commentator feels Kishan getting dropped from Mumbai Indians (MI)'s first XI doesn't look good on him. Aakash Chopra added that Yadav's sudden dip in returns, Hardik Pandya not bowling in the IPL and Kumar's lackluster season with SunRisers Hyderabad (SRH) have all opened up a few spots in the T20 World Cup 2021 India squad.
Speaking in a video on his YouTube channel, Aakash Chopra said:
"I am looking at Ishan Kishan's form, I mean, the guy isn't even on Mumbai's team. When you are not in Mumbai's XI can you be in India's 15? That's a big question. Suryakumar Yadav, as much as I love him, the fact is his form has vanished and lost. He looks like a shadow of himself. Then I think of Hardik Pandya, who hasn't bowled. The selectors said they picked 3 fast-bowlers because Hardik had promised to bowl but he isn't."
He added:
Bhuvneshwar Kumar's form is troubling me too. If so many players are not in form, does that mean you'll have to make changes? Look, ideally you don't want to make too many changes because you selected players after some thought and now you should trust them for 2-4 bad innings."
Aakash Chopra said Shreyas Iyer, who is currently in the reserves for the T20 World Cup, is "almost confirmed" to join the main squad. He added that in-form Rajasthan Royals (RR) captain Sanju Samson and Chennai Super Kings' (CSK) bowling all-rounders Shardul Thakur and Deepak Chahar are all in contention.
Aakash Chopra expounded:
"But are there changes in the offing? I think yes, one change is almost confirmed - I feel Shreyas Iyer will come back to the team and one player will have to leave. One more player is under pressure too. Will you now look at Sanju Samson? I am not saying they should, I am just saying what might happen... I am looking at Shreyas Iyer, Sanju Samson, Deepak Chahar and Shardul Thakur. There might not be three or four changes, but I won't be surprised with two changes."
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The T20 World Cup squad, which was announced on September 6, can undergo changes until October 10. Apart from Iyer, who has made a brilliant comeback for Delhi Capitals (DC), Chahar and Thakur are also part of the reserves. Samson failed to make the cut owing to poor form during India's tour of Sri Lanka.
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Aakash Chopra also commented on the possible slowness of the pitches in UAE during the World Cup. He said that looking at how they have performed so far in the IPL, the pitches are likely to favor Asian teams a lot more than other sides.
Aakash Chopra added:
"Seeing Sharjah's wicket makes my heart beat a bit faster. It used to start with 200-around scores and slow down to 120 ones. It has started with 120-around scores so will now it reach to 80-run matches? This is not ideal although the other two wickets won't be affected much."
Aakash Chopra concluded:
"But let's be fair they have started very slowly this time which wasn't the case during the last IPL... Australia, England, New Zealand might think they are in a fix because there are a lot of matches, there are double headers every day... I believe the pitches will only get slower which will increase the standings of Asian teams - India and Pakistan you can be happier!"
Following the T20 World Cup 2021 fixtures, India and Pakistan will start their campaigns on October 24 in Dubai.