Aakash Chopra picks the KKR players for whom IPL 2021 presents a great opportunity
Aakash Chopra has named the KKR (Kolkata Knight Riders) players who have a brilliant opportunity to showcase their talent in IPL 2021.
KKR has quite a few players who have either just made an inroad into the Indian team or are on the fringes of selection. All these cricketers will be hoping to catch the selectors' eye with their impactful performances in IPL 2021.
In a video shared on his YouTube channel, Aakash Chopra named Shubman Gill as the KKR player with the greatest chance to display his skillset.
"The biggest opportunity according to me in my opinion is for Shubman Gill. His Test numbers declined a little when playing in India, the pitches were difficult," said Chopra.
The former KKR player reckons the stylish batsman can use the IPL as a springboard to further his case for a spot in the Indian limited-overs team.
"He doesn't get a chance in ODIs or T20Is. He is there in the team but his name doesn't come. Gill is supremely talented but this is the opportunity to go and express yourself as an opener and just completely command a different kind of respect," added Chopra.
Shubman Gill was the highest run-scorer for KKR in IPL 2020, with 440 runs to his name. However, he will hope to play more match-defining knocks and improve on his strike rate of 117.96 from last year.
Aakash Chopra picks other KKR players with great opportunities in IPL 2021
Aakash Chopra believes Varun Chakravarthy and Prasidh Krishna have excellent opportunities to cement their place in the Indian team through their performances in IPL 2021.
"The other opportunity I see is for Varun Chakravarthy to cement his place a little more. Prasidh Krishna is now playing for India, played two-three matches and did well in those. The expectation is that he goes from strength to strength because his last season of the IPL was not good," said Chopra.
The 43-year-old named Dinesh Karthik, Nitish Rana and Kuldeep Yadav as a few other KKR players whose cause can be helped by outstanding performances in the IPL.
"Last but not the least, I am looking at Dinesh Karthik and Nitish Rana to make an impact and Kuldeep Yadav. He will get a chance to play as the initial matches are in Chennai, so I really hope that he does well because he is not getting an opportunity anywhere, so we really want Kuldeep to fire," concluded Chopra.
Kuldeep Yadav, who did not have a great ODI series against England and played just five matches for KKR last season, will hope to get a longer run in the upcoming edition of the IPL.