Aakash Chopra thinks Shubman Gill may play before Yashasvi Jaiswal. He’ll be Rohit Sharma’s opening partner for India’s future T20I series against Afghanistan.
India’s team is set to play against Ibrahim Zadran’s team three times in T20Is. The first match is on Thursday, January 11 in Mohali. Gill, Jaiswal, and Rohit are the opener specialists among the Indian squad. This 16-member Indian team was picked on the past Sunday.
Aakash Chopra expressed his opinion in a video posted on his YouTube channel, suggesting that Gill might surpass Jaiswal for the first slot. He thought to himself:
“Interestingly enough, KL Rahul’s name is not there in this team. There will be a fight for the opening position because Shubman Gill, Yashasvi Jaiswal and Rohit Sharma are all there. So one of them will have to sit out.”
Aakash Chopra
The former India opener added:
“In all likelihood, Yashasvi will be asked to sit out, and Rohit and Gill will open because Gill is a senior member. Seniority-wise, he is ahead of Yashasvi Jaiswal. He fluctuates a little too much in the T20 format, that is also a fact.”
Aakash Chopra
In the latest T20I series versus South Africa, India started with Gill and Jaiswal. Gill, the right-handed hitter from Punjab, sadly only scored 8 runs in two times at bat. In contrast, Jaiswal, the lefty from Mumbai bounced back. After getting out for zero in one game, he recorded a 60 run score in the last T20I.
“There can be a discussion on that” – Aakash Chopra on KL Rahul’s exclusion from India squad
According to Aakash Chopra, the decision not to choose KL Rahul for the T20I series versus Afghanistan is questionable. He expressed:
“Rohit Sharma, KL Rahul and Virat Kohli were India’s top three in the 2022 World Cup. Among them, KL Rahul has been dropped or has not been picked, there is no clarity, but he is not there. There can be a discussion on that as well.”
Aakash Chopra
The Karnataka batsman might have filled the middle-order wicketkeeper-batter position, as he has been doing recently in Test matches and ODIs, Chopra said. He clarified:
“His strike rate in T20Is is more than 135, so that is not bad. There are no vacant opening positions in any case, and you play him in the middle in ODIs as well, so you could have done that here too. You play him down the order even in Tests now. However, you said you need to make some change at least.”
Aakash Chopra
In 68 T20I innings, KL Rahul has scored 2265 runs. His scoring stats are mighty fine: 37.75 average, 139.12 strike rate. But, he’s always played above No. 4 in T20Is. To secure a spot on India’s 2024 T20 World Cup squad, he might need to demonstrate mid-order skill in IPL 2024.