"I am slightly surprised you are not playing him all the matches" - Aakash Chopra lauds Yuzvendra Chahal's performances vs England
Aakash Chopra has lauded Yuzvendra Chahal for his performances in the recently-concluded limited-overs series against England. The cricketer-turned-analyst also questioned the team management for not playing the leg spinner in all games.
Chahal picked up seven wickets in the three-match ODI series against England, with spells of 4/47 and 3/60 in the last two games. The wily spinner snared four wickets in the two games he played in the preceding T20I series against the same opponents.
In a video shared on his YouTube channel, Chopra picked Yuzvendra Chahal as Team India's fourth-best performer against England, behind Hardik Pandya, Rishabh Pant and Jasprit Bumrah. He observed:
"Last but not the least - my fourth player is Yuzi Chahal. His performances force you to think why he is not regularly in the team. The way he has bowled, I am slightly surprised you are not playing him all the matches."
Chopra asked why the premier spinner was rested for the final T20I against England. The former Indian batter said:
"Why do you keep him out of the team in between? He played two matches in T20s, four wickets with an economy of 7.0. Two wickets in both innings, well done Yuzi."
Chahal registered figures of 2/32 and 2/10 in the first two T20Is against England. However, with the Men in Blue having already sealed the series after the first two games, the team management opted to give him a break in the final T20I and give Ravi Bishnoi a chance instead.
"He is telling us time and again that he is a special player" - Aakash Chopra on Yuzvendra Chahal
Chopra pointed out that Yuzvendra Chahal is showcasing his prowess with the ball repeatedly. He elaborated:
"If we talk about ODI cricket, seven wickets in three innings with an economy of 5.35 and a best of 4/47. He didn't get much chance to bowl in the first match. He is also telling us time and again that he is a special player and that you can use him better."
The renowned commentator concluded by questioning the decision to rest the 31-year-old spinner for the upcoming T20I series against the West Indies. Chopra reasoned:
"Personally, I didn't like that he is being rested, he will play the ODIs in the West Indies tour but not the T20s. In my opinion, he should be allowed to play. He is not someone whose workload management you should talk about for the simple reason that he is a spinner, he will be alright."
Yuzvendra Chahal is joint-third on the list 🤩🇮🇳
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Aakash Chopra also had words of praise for Rohit Sharma for playing an excellent knock in the first ODI, Arshdeep Singh for shining on his debut, and Suryakumar Yadav for smashing a scintillating century in the final T20I.