"Neither Yuzi Chahal nor Varun Chakaravarthy is there" - Aakash Chopra on India's squad for T20I series vs Zimbabwe
Aakash Chopra has expressed slight surprise about neither Yuzvendra Chahal nor Varun Chakaravarthy being picked in India's squad for the upcoming T20I series against Zimbabwe. Washington Sundar and Ravi Bishnoi are the only two frontline spinners selected.
The selectors recently chose the 15-member Indian squad for the five-match series to be played in Harare from July 6. With most of India's 2024 T20 World Cup squad being given a break, Shubman Gill has been appointed the skipper.
Reflecting on the squad in a video shared on his YouTube channel, Chopra opined that the selectors have taken an interesting call in picking only two spinners, with both Chahal and Chakaravarthy being ignored.
"It's clear that guys who haven't got a chance to play in the World Cup are there here. However, interestingly, Yuzi Chahal is not there. Yashasvi Jaiswal, who is in the team, is there, and Rinku Singh and Khaleel Ahmed, who are in the reserves, are there, but Yuzi Chahal is not there," he elaborated (6:25).
"Interestingly, they have kept only two spinners. Neither Yuzi Chahal nor Varun Chakaravarthy is there. Varun Chakaravarthy had a very good IPL. He has even put an Instagram story - 'I wish I had a paid PR agency'. That hurts. You see a lot of upside for Washington Sundar but he is stuck in the wrong franchise. Ravi Bishnoi is a part of this team," the former India opener added.
Chopra reckons Harshit Rana should have also been picked in the seam-bowling department.
"After that, there are four fast bowlers. I feel Harshit Rana should have been there but he is not part of this team. Avesh Khan, Khaleel Ahmed, Mukesh Kumar and Tushar Deshpande are there. I am a little surprised that they haven't thought about Harshit Rana now, which means the selectors are going to wait and want to see a bit more of him," he observed.
With 19 scalps in 11 innings, Rana played a huge role in the Kolkata Knight Riders' title-winning run in IPL 2024. He impressed most with his death-bowling skills, especially his deceptive slower balls.
"It will be interesting to see who will open" - Aakash Chopra on the selection of 4 openers
Aakash Chopra reckons India will likely have a selection conundrum for the openers' positions and might have to choose between Sanju Samson and Dhruv Jurel as the wicketkeeper-batter.
"It will be interesting to see who will open because they have picked four openers - Shubman Gill, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Ruturaj Gaikwad and Abhishek Sharma. How will all four play? You will maximum be able to play three. It will be worth watching who will be those three. One out of Sanju Samson and Dhruv Jurel will play. You can play both but then how will you settle the batting order?" he explained in the same video (6:50).
The cricketer-turned-commentator termed Nitish Kumar Reddy's selection a welcome move as a potential future backup for Hardik Pandya.
"You have to give a place to Rinku Singh. You have Nitish Reddy, who can give a little fast bowling and batting, as a good shadow option for Hardik Pandya. Again rewarded for his phenomenal IPL performance. Riyan Parag has also been rewarded," Chopra stated.
Reddy amassed 303 runs at a strike rate of 142.92 in 11 innings for the SunRisers Hyderabad in IPL 2024. The seam-bowling all-rounder also bowled a few crucial overs and picked up three wickets, albeit at a high economy rate of 11.62.