"You might think this guy is totally against Harshal Patel" - Aakash Chopra picks his bowlers for the Indian T20 World Cup squad
Aakash Chopra has left out Harshal Patel from his picks of bowlers for Team India's T20 World Cup squad.
Patel rose to prominence with his Purple Cap-winning exploits for the Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) in IPL 2021. That performance earned him a place in the Indian team and he has given a decent account of himself while representing the Men in Blue.
In a video shared on his YouTube channel, Aakash Chopra made his selection of bowlers for the Indian World Cup squad. He left out Harshal Patel, reasoning:
"I am not taking Harshal's name because I don't think he will work there. You might think this guy is totally against Harshal Patel. I am not against but those pitches are different, the ball is not going to grip. I am not seeing him bowl with Bumrah at the death."
While highlighting that Jasprit Bumrah is a certain pick, the former India opener feels Deepak Chahar has a slight edge over Bhuvneshwar Kumar at the moment. Aakash Chopra elaborated:
"Bumrah is confirmed amongst the fast bowlers. Bhuvneshwar Kumar/Deepak Chahar - Deepak Chahar is slightly ahead in my list because he bats as well. Bhuvneshwar Kumar is bowling better at the moment but eight months' time is still left. So one out of Bhuvneshwar Kumar and Deepak Chahar."
Aakash Chopra wants the Indian selectors to pick at least one amongst Prasidh Krishna, Mohammed Siraj and Avesh Khan. He explained:
"Keep one amongst Prasidh Krishna, Mohammed Siraj and Avesh Khan at least because you need pace, you need bounce and all three of them have that. I won't be too surprised if you want to keep two out of these three."
Krishna is yet to represent Team India in T20I cricket. Siraj and Avesh have also played very few matches and the trio's performance in IPL 2022 could prove to be the deciding factor for their selections.
"You will definitely look towards Mohammed Shami" - Aakash Chopra
Aakash Chopra named Mohammed Shami, T Natarajan and Khaleel Ahmed as the other seam-bowling options, with the latter two also providing the left-arm angle. He observed:
"Mohammed Shami/T Natarajan/Khaleel - you want to take a left-armer along. That's another thing, if you want to carry, left-armer is that X-factor. You will definitely look towards Mohammed Shami. He has not been kept in the team currently but he should be there."
The renowned commentator reckons Shardul Thakur has a remote chance of getting picked. Aakash Chopra reasoned:
"Shardul Thakur - a very outside chance because Shardul Thakur, Deepak Chahar - similar kinds of players. Shardul is a middle-overs bowler, neither does he bowl at the death nor in the first six. Deepak Chahar gives you wickets at the start, Bhuvneshwar Kumar probably bowls better than both of them at the death."
Looks like Shardul Thakur may not be in India's plans for the T20 World Cup.
Bhuvi/Siraj/Chahar
Bumrah/Avesh
Harshal
With one of these missing out on the final 15.
Aakash Chopra picked Yuzvendra Chahal as the only specialist spinner in his squad, apart from Ravindra Jadeja as the spin-bowling all-rounder. He said:
"One spinner - Yuzi Chahal. You might say he should have been there in the last World Cup as well. I am saying that he should have been there but the ones doing the selection didn't pick him. Yuzi Chahal and Ravindra Jadeja are your only two spinners - that's it."
Although the pitches in Australia are likely to assist the pacers, the spinners can also prove handy on the big grounds. The Indian selectors might look to include at least one more spinner as a backup option.