"My main concern will be Jadeja's batting form and Shivam Dube's form" - Aakash Chopra on India's issues after 2024 T20 World Cup warm-up game
Aakash Chopra reckons Ravindra Jadeja and Shivam Dube's batting form are India's biggest concerns heading into the 2024 T20 World Cup. While Dube scored 14 runs off 16 deliveries in the warm-up game against Bangladesh, Jadeja remained unbeaten on a six-ball four.
Despite the duo's slightly underwhelming performances, India posted 182/5 after opting to bat first in New York on Saturday, June 1. The Men in Blue then restricted the Bangla Tigers to 122/9 to register an emphatic 60-run win.
Reviewing the game in a video shared on his YouTube channel, Chopra noted that Dube and Jadeja's struggles with the bat were the only potential negatives for India.
"One thing was slightly negative. We shouldn't say negative but we expected a little better. Shivam Dube's bat wasn't striking the ball, which is not a good thing. Since Shivam Dube made two successive zeroes, the same Shivam Dube hasn't been seen," he elaborated (4:15).
"You want him to be in form because the number at which he is going to bat, he won't get the time to find form. In my opinion, there is a question mark whether Ravindra Jadeja can play the finisher's role. So that could be a slight problem. My main concern will be Jadeja's batting form and Shivam Dube's form," the former India opener added.
Dube hit a six over long-off but struggled to time the ball otherwise. Jadeja could have been dismissed twice during his short knock, surviving a close stumping appeal and a run-out, with Litton Das missing the stumps from close quarters.
"All of that is alright" - Aakash Chopra on India's bowling
On the flip side, Aakash Chopra was satisfied with India's bowling performance.
"Arshdeep Singh with the new ball, Mohammed Siraj, Jasprit Bumrah, Kuldeep Yadav and Axar Patel - all of that is alright. The new ball is moving a lot. If it moves so much, anyone can have difficulties," he said (5:00).
The cricketer-turned-commentator noted that the conditions were bowler-friendly and the venue might not see high-scoring games between evenly matched sides.
"Arshdeep's ball was moving a lot left and right. Batting wasn't seen that easy. When two equal teams play in such matches, you might not have very high-scoring matches. You might still be able to hit straight sixes but it won't be that easy to hit sixes on the sides," Chopra stated.
Arshdeep Singh (2/12) and Shivam Dube (2/13) were India's most successful bowlers. Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammed Siraj, Hardik Pandya, and Axar Patel picked up a wicket apiece, with Mahmadullah retiring out.