IND v AUS 2020: 'Prithvi Shaw has problems but who does not' - Aakash Chopra believes he should be India's opener
Former opener Aakash Chopra has cast his vote for Prithvi Shaw as India's second opener alongside Mayank Agarwal for the first Test of the Border-Gavaskar Trophy. He made this choice in a video shared on his YouTube channel.
Aakash Chopra started by highlighting Prithvi Shaw's achievements including being one of the few Indian players to have scored a debut Test century.
"Prithvi Shaw is the same player who has scored a century on debut. How many people are able to do that, very few. But he has done that. Virender Sehwag, Rohit Sharma and Sourav Ganguly are few of the others who have done that."
The reputed commentator observed Prithvi Shaw was out of action post the stupendous start to his Test career, first due to injury and then due to a doping violation.
"He did it against West Indies. Yes, it was an encounter at home but he scored an explosive century. He scored runs in the second match as well. After that he got injured and was stuck in a doping case as well and was out for quite some time."
Aakash Chopra pointed out Prithvi Shaw has shown he can score runs in seaming conditions as well with his half-century in the second Test against New Zealand earlier this year.
"Then he went to New Zealand and we felt that the tour may not be good because of the conditions and his unique style of play. But there also he showed in the 2nd Test match that even though the pitch might be green in Christchurch, his playing style might look risky but he has the ability to score runs."
He added Prithvi Shaw might have some technical deficiencies but overcame them to a certain extent during that knock in India's last overseas Test assignment.
"There is a gap between the bat and the pad when he plays his shots and has had some problems against the short ball as well. But in the last Test match India played outside the country, Prithvi Shaw actually opened and did alright."
The former KKR player observed Prithvi Shaw gave a decent account of himself in the first innings of the pink-ball practice match against Australia A.
"Even in Australia, the first warm-up match was not good but in the 1st innings of the second encounter, he was hitting boundaries of good balls. He is the type of player that if he plays 20 overs, he will score 60-70 runs on his own."
Aakash Chopra highlighted Prithvi Shaw has the ability to give the team a flying start to put a spanner in the opposition's plans.
"He will not only make the new ball old but make runs at such a fast pace that you will get the time to bat at ease later. He is that kind of a player who will rattle the opposition. He can play the role of a disruptive player."
Aakash Chopra added Prithvi Shaw might have some deficiencies but that is the case with every player.
"He did well in the last first-class season as well. He has problems but who does not have them."
Aakash Chopra on why Prithvi Shaw should be Mayank Agarwal's opening partner for the first Test
Aakash Chopra opined Prithvi Shaw deserves to play ahead of Shubman Gill and KL Rahul as India's second opener in the first Test against Australia. He reasoned the diminutive opener is at the top of the pecking order and is not in dismal form.
"If you want to do justice to the players and treat them properly, I feel Prithvi Shaw has the right to open in the first Test. He is not completely woefully out of form. He made a few runs in the first innings of the pink-ball warm-up match when the other players struggled as well."
The 43-year-old iterated Prithvi Shaw should retain the opener's spot considering his past performances, especially in the last Test against the Kiwis.
"He had a century on Test debut and made runs in tough conditions in New Zealand, not too many, but no one made that many runs there. So, if you see from all these vantage points, I feel Prithvi Shaw deserves to be Mayank Agarwal's partner."
Aakash Chopra signed off by observing Prithvi Shaw is likely to be Mayank Agarwal's opening partner for the Adelaide Test.
"I feel Prithvi Shaw is likely to open with Mayank Agarwal and it will not be unfair at all."
The second opener's spot alongside Mayank Agarwal has been a subject of much debate. With KL Rahul not playing either of the warm-up encounters, he seems to be out of the reckoning for the spot at the moment.
It will be a tough call for the Indian team management to choose between Prithvi Shaw and Shubman Gill. While the former is the incumbent opener, the latter has shown slightly better form in the two warm-up encounters.