T20 World Cup: "When that happens, then you make a mess"- Aakash Chopra on how IPL form influences prompt changes in India's T20I squad
Former Indian cricketer Aakash Chopra feels that whenever there is an Indian Premier League (IPL) season just before a major ICC event, the performances in that season get players fast-tracked into the Indian team.
The 44-year-old stressed how the second half of the IPL 2021 season, which happened just before last year's T20 World Cup, influenced the selectors to go with players like Varun Chakravarthy ahead of other experienced spinners.
Speaking in a video on his YouTube channel, Aakash Chopra explained why opener Ruturaj Gaikwad, who has been one of such fast-tracked players, may not get any more chances in T20Is before the end of this year's T20 World Cup.
He said:
"Ruturaj Gaikwad didn't get many chances, and in the few that he got, he didn't trouble anyone as such. Now I don't think he will get any chances, because there is no IPL before the World Cup. When that happens, then you make a mess by bringing players like Varun Chakravarthy, Shardul Thakur thinking that they should be included since they did well in the IPL."
Aakash Chopra on India's handling of Rishabh Pant in T20Is
Many question marks have been raised on Rishabh Pant's place in India's T20I team after consistently underwhelming performances. The 24-year-old was given a different role in the T20Is against England, where he opened the innings in the last two games.
On this, Aakash Chopra stated:
"When you talk about Rishabh Pant as opener, you should compare him with Ishan Kishan, because both are explosive left-handers. But Pant has scored just 27 runs in two games and these are not enough numbers to have a debate about. He was made to open in England but then after his hundred in Manchester, Pant was again brought down in the middle-order."
Rishabh Pant's continuous struggle in T20Is this year says his place in the WC squad is in danger. There are many other players like Samson / Kishan who are waiting for their spot in the squad. If Pant wants to see himself present in the WC squad , he should bat more responsibly.
Despite having the option to open with Pant again in the first T20I against West Indies, the team management sprung another surprise by swapping his batting position with that of Suryakumar Yadav. This left Aakash Chopra even more confused, as he added:
"Even in the first T20I against West Indies, you had a chance to play Pant at the top and let Suryakumar Yadav bat in the middle. But you opened with Suryakumar Yadav. So will Pant open? I won't rule it out completely because you have invested in him and rightfully so. It will also give a left-right combination with explosive batter at the top and as it is, he hasn't had much impact in the middle-order in T20Is."
India still have four more T20Is to play in the ongoing series and it shouldn't be a surprise if they come up with another new opening combination as a part of their experiementation.