"Who plays with 4 keepers?" - Aakash Chopra questions Delhi Capitals' strategy heading into IPL 2024 clash vs Rajasthan Royals
Aakash Chopra has questioned the Delhi Capitals' (DC) team selection in their opening IPL 2024 game against the Punjab Kings (PBKS).
The Capitals will face the Rajasthan Royals (RR) in their second match in Jaipur on Thursday, March 28. They will hope to open their account after a four-wicket defeat against PBKS.
In a video shared on his YouTube channel, Chopra opined that the Delhi Capitals had a slightly flawed strategy in their tournament opener.
"The focus will be on Delhi because they lost the first match and I don't understand their strategy. It remains to be seen if they go away from that strategy. You cannot have four overseas batters in your top six - (David) Warner, (Mitchell) Marsh, (Tristan) Stubbs and Shai Hope," he reasoned.
"You cannot have so many keepers as well. You don't need them. Tristan Stubbs, Rishabh Pant, Abhishek Porel - whom you will play now, and Shai Hope are all keepers. Who plays with four keepers? What is Prithvi Shaw doing sitting outside? You will have to play him," the former India opener added.
Chopra noted that the Capitals had Ricky Bhui and Sumit Kumar in their playing XI but not Prithvi Shaw. He also questioned the franchise for not including Mukesh Kumar in their starting XI.
"The first name that comes to my mind is Mitchell Marsh" - Aakash Chopra on the Delhi Capitals players in focus
![Mitchell Marsh (right) opened with David Warner in the Delhi Capitals' opening game. [P/C: iplt20.com]](https://statico.sportskeeda.com/editor/2024/03/7a2dc-17116011786564-1920.jpg?w=500)
Aakash Chopra chose Mitchell Marsh as the first Delhi Capitals player to watch out for in Thursday's game.
"The first name that comes to my mind is Mitchell Marsh because he is the sort of player who can change the game. He was playing well in the last match against Punjab (Kings). I am expecting him to play a long knock because if he bats for long, the score runs like the Mumbai taxi," he said (8:30).
The renowned commentator chose Rishabh Pant and Kuldeep Yadav as the other two Delhi Capitals players in focus.
"The second guy in focus is Rishabh Pant for obvious reasons - how he manages the middle order because Shai Hope, even if he plays, is not your typical T20 rockstar. So the pressure will be on Rishabh Pant to play in the middle order and do the finisher's job as you haven't picked a No. 6 or No. 7 player," Chopra elaborated.
"Then I am looking at Kuldeep Yadav because this is a big ground. You rarely see Yuzvendra Chahal, Ravichandran Ashwin and Kuldeep Yadav playing in the same match. He (Kuldeep) did well in the last match as well. If he had got the third wicket, if David Warner had taken Sam Curran's catch, Delhi might have won but they couldn't," the former KKR player added.
While Marsh smashed 20 runs off 12 deliveries against the Punjab Kings, Pant scored a 13-ball 18 and looked good behind the wickets. Kuldeep (2/20 in four overs) was the Capitals' most effective bowler in their opening fixture.