"The bowling was probably too weak" - Aakash Chopra on England posting a massive total against India in the 3rd T20I
Aakash Chopra feels the absence of Bhuvneshwar Kumar and Jasprit Bumrah made the Indian bowling attack extremely weak in the third T20I against England on Sunday.
The Men In Blue, who opted to rest the two experienced pacers and Yuzvendra Chahal for the dead rubber at Trent Bridge, conceded 215 runs. They eventually lost the match by 17 runs despite Suryakumar Yadav's blazing century.
While reviewing the third T20I in a video shared on his YouTube channel, Chopra highlighted the lack of potency in the Indian attack, saying:
"Jos Buttler's team opted to bat first after winning the toss. The start was good. Bumrah and Bhuvi were not there and suddenly you realized that the bowling was probably too weak."
While praising Ravi Bishnoi and Harshal Patel for their efforts with the ball, the former Indian batter pointed out that Umran Malik, Avesh Khan and Ravindra Jadeja were found slightly wanting. Chopra elaborated:
"The job Bhuvneshwar Kumar was doing was different because Bhuvi and swing, deadly combination, picking up wickets at the start. I liked Ravi Bishnoi's bowling, Harshal Patel was also impressive. Umran Malik went for more than 50 runs, and Avesh and Jaddu gave 43 and 45 runs respectively in their four overs."
Malik did pick up Jason Roy's wicket but conceded a whopping 56 runs in his four overs. While Avesh and Jadeja were also expensive, Bishnoi and Harshal, who picked up two wickets apiece, were the only bowlers to give a decent account of themselves.
"Buttler's bat has been silent in the entire series" - Aakash Chopra on England's batting
Speaking about England's batting, Chopra highlighted that neither Jos Buttler nor Jason Roy made a substantial contribution in the series. He observed:
"Buttler's bat has been silent in the entire series. Here also he scored only 18 runs, was dismissed through an inside edge of Avesh Khan's ball. They scored 215, Roy had 27 in his account, was dismissed by Umran Malik's delivery."
The renowned commentator, however, was all praise for Dawid Malan and Liam Livingstone's efforts with the bat. Chopra explained:
"But after that Dawid Malan, how well he batted. It's very interesting how Malan went after Ravindra Jadeja because his match-up with left-arm spin is very good and he showed why he plays left-arm spin so well. Livingstone also scored 42 runs, interestingly he didn't a single four but four sixes."
@dmalan29
Brutal and beautiful ❤️
Match highlights: ms.spr.ly/6017bFJqS
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Malan smashed 77 runs off 39 balls, a knock studded with six fours and five sixes. Livingstone's unbeaten 42 came off 29 deliveries and was laced with four hits over the ropes.
Also Read: "I am not ready to agree that he is ahead in the pecking order" - Aakash Chopra on Shreyas Iyer playing ahead of Deepak Hooda in 3rd Ind-Eng T20I