Aakash Chopra believes Ravi Bishnoi has pretty much secured his spot in India’s team for the upcoming T20 World Cup next year.
Bishnoi took the most wickets in the just finished T20I series between India and Australia, with nine. In 21 T20Is, the wrist-spinner has 34 wickets at a good economy rate of 7.14.
Aakash Chopra was asked in a video posted to his YouTube channel how certain he is that Bishnoi’s name will be on India’s T20 World Cup roster, and he responded:
“I personally feel it’s almost a done deal. I feel his name will be there because of the way he is bowling and the number of wickets he is picking. He is consistent. He is a wicket-taker and bowls with the new ball.”
Aakash Chopra
The former India opener believes a strong showing in the IPL 2024 would secure the spinner’s position in the Men in Blue’s T20 World Cup team. He stated:
“The matches will be in America and the West Indies. Slightly quick in the air on slow pitches – I think he will bring value. The kid fields well and he is very accurate as a wrist-spinner. I feel if he keeps bowling like this and has a decent IPL, he is a done deal.”
Aakash Chopra
Yuzvendra Chahal and Kuldeep Yadav are expected to challenge Bishnoi for the wrist-spinner spot in the world championship. Chahal has been left out of the shortest format but is included in the ODI squad, while Bishnoi and Kuldeep have been selected for India’s T20I team for the visit to South Africa.
Aakash Chopra on Rinku Singh’s role in India’s T20 World Cup squad
A question was posed to Aakash Chopra about whether he pictured Rinku Singh in India’s T20 World Cup team. He said:
“Firstly, he is an excellent player. Secondly, the number at which he bats, very few players bat at that number even for their franchise. It’s a huge list – Shubman Gill, Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli, Sanju Samson, Ishan Kishan, Suryakumar Yadav, Shreyas Iyer and even Hardik Pandya – everyone bats in the top order.”
Aakash Chopra
The cricketer-turned-commentator emphasized India’s lack of lower-middle-order hitters. He continued on to say:
“Yashasvi Jaiswal, Ruturaj Gaikwad – no one wants to go down the order. If everyone will play in the top 4, who will play at No. 5 and No. 6? This problem comes when you go to the World Cup or any other big tournament straight from the IPL. You ask who will play down the order.”
Aakash Chopra
While noting that Rinku Singh plays that role on a regular basis, Chopra believes he should be maintained in the mix since he also gives a left-handed alternative in the middle order. He continued by predicting that if the Kolkata Knight Riders perform well in the IPL 2024, he will be included to the T20 World Cup team.
