Former Indian Test opener Aakash Chopra said Ravi Bishnoi could come into the playing XI for India in the second T20I against Afghanistan. Bishnoi had not played in the opening game on Sunday, and Chopra believes India would not make any other change in the final XI.
According to reports, Varun Chakravarthy has been ruled out of the series against Afghanistan due to an injury. Chakravarthy had returned with impressive figures of 1-16 in his quota of four overs in the series opener.
“Who will come in place of Varun Chakaravarthy? I would say Ravi Bishnoi looks like a straightforward choice because no replacement has been announced, and matches are being played every alternate day. So, I see Ravi Bishnoi playing this evening. Only one change in terms of the selection. I am saying Ravi Bishnoi in place of Varun Chakaravarthy, and play the remaining XI as it is,” Aakash Chopra said on his YouTube Channel.
Chopra reckons Sanju Samson will be under scrutiny after the right-hander was dismissed cheaply after scoring 10 runs off eight balls.
“In batting, Sanju Samson will be in focus once again. You really want him to do well. He will start feeling the heat because it’s also true that he hasn’t scored many runs in the few matches he has played after the World Cup. Questions will come automatically if you don’t score runs,” he observed.
On the other hand, the renowned commentator highlighted that Shivam Dube hasn’t bowled much under Shreyas Iyer’s captaincy.
“Good teams improve while winning, and whoever does that becomes the best. For that, you need to introspect. That is where the fifth bowler’s question will come. I was looking at how the fifth or sixth bowlers have performed under Shreyas Iyer. He hasn’t bowled Shivam Dube much. He has conceded almost 10 runs per over for sure. This includes the 20th over of the last match, in which he conceded 21 runs,” he said.
Chopra added that the fifth bowling option is an issue for the team in the recent past.
“Suryansh Shedge has conceded 11.28 runs per over. Abhishek Sharma has bowled only 5.5 overs. Washington Sundar has given 38 runs in two overs. Nitish Kumar Reddy bowled two overs in an innings and conceded 30 runs. Tilak Varma has bowled a little, but the fifth and sixth bowlers have conceded 335 runs in 33 overs thus far,” Chopra observed.
The second T20I between India and Afghanistan will be played on Tuesday in Delhi.
