"Burger looks good with fries but not with the white ball in hand" - Aakash Chopra picks Nandre Burger among RR players in focus in IPL clash vs MI
Aakash Chopra sees Rajasthan Royals (RR) seamer Nandre Burger as a threat to the Mumbai Indians (MI) batters in their IPL 2024 clash in Mumbai on Monday, April 1.
Burger picked up three wickets in RR's wins in their first two games of the ongoing edition of the prestigious league. However, it remains to be seen if the South African left-seamer gets to play against MI either as part of the visitors' starting XI or as an impact sub.
In a video shared on his YouTube channel, Chopra picked Burger as one of the Rajasthan Royals players in focus in Monday's game.
"Nandre Burger, he was bowling at a speed of 150 kph. Burger looks good with fries but not with the white ball in hand. He bowls bouncers and swings the ball as well. So Nandre Burger will be in focus in this game because if there is any ground in India that has help for fast bowlers, especially with the new ball, that is Wankhede," he reasoned (9:05).
The former India opener chose skipper Sanju Samson as another RR player to watch out for.
"I will not focus on Riyan Parag in this match. I am focusing on Sanju Samson because he is the captain and bats at No. 3. It's an important number. He captains well. He didn't score runs in the last match but played very well in the match before that," Chopra stated (8:30).
Chopra added that the entire country notices players who perform against Mumbai, whether in domestic cricket or the IPL. He expressed hope that Samson has a good day from RR's perspective.
"I will focus on Yashasvi Jaiswal once again" - Aakash Chopra
Aakash Chopra named Yashasvi Jaiswal as the first Rajasthan Royals player in focus.
"I will focus on Yashasvi Jaiswal once again because he is a Mumbai boy. He used to be just behind at the Azad Maidan and wished to play here one day. This used to be his thinking and when he got an opportunity to play, he scored a century. However, in this season, he looked good in the first match and got out while trying to play a big shot," he elaborated (7:25).
"He didn't even look good in the second match, got out to Mukesh Kumar. So he hasn't arrived yet. So my focus will be on when Yashasvi's bat starts talking properly. In the end, Indians in the Indian Premier League need to come to the fore and there is no Indian batter who is more talented and has better current form than him," the former KKR player added.
Chopra noted that he expected Jaiswal to win the Orange Cap and have a 700-run season. While acknowledging that the start hasn't been that good, he opined that Monday's game could trigger a turnaround.