Cricket News

Aakash Chopra rings alarm bells for 3 Indian players ahead of T20 World Cup

Chopra warned the likes of Tilak Varma, Shubman Gill and Jitesh Sharma as they failed to make it count against the Proteas.

Dec 15, 2023 6:04 pm

India roared back from their defeat in Gqeberha to thrash South Africa by a massive 106 runs in Johannesburg, levelling the series at 1-1. Captain Suryakumar Yadav’s stunning century and Kuldeep Yadav’s five-wicket haul were the driving forces behind India’s dominant victory.

Now, India has just three T20Is against Afghanistan left before the T20 World Cup in June 2024, which will be played in the United States of America and the Caribbean Islands. With the World Cup looming, this series was a pressure cooker for players vying for a limited number of spots. Some rose to the occasion, while others stumbled under the intense glare of competition.

Assessing India’s performance in the series, former India opener, Aakash Chopra opined that the young middle-order batter, Tilak Varma had failed to make it count. “Tilak Varma is missing opportunities. He will have to be careful, because his Ireland series was not good, and even here he is missing out while batting at No.3. Against Australia, he had to bat a little down the order. No. 3 is already a difficult place to hold because it is still Kohli’s,” Chopra said.

Aakash Chopra warns youngsters

Chopra pointed out Shubman Gill‘s inconsistent run in T20Is, suggesting a technical vulnerability against left-arm spin that needs addressing. “There is inconsistency when it comes to Gill’s T20I numbers. There are 1-2 big knocks, but around it, there is nothing but low scores. Also, against left-arm spin, it seems like there is an issue for him. To my understanding, he is trapped by the left-arm spinners inside the powerplay,” he said in a video uploaded on his YouTube Channel.

Chopra highlighted the precariousness of Jitesh Sharma‘s position. While acknowledging the difficulty of batting lower down, he emphasized that missed opportunities could be fatal, with a quartet of wicketkeeper-batters, Rishabh Pant, Ishan Kishan, Sanju Samson, and KL Rahul, eager to seize any slip-up. “Jitesh Sharma has also missed out on opportunities in a way, but he bats down the order. If he does not do it, then there will be someone else who will be ready. Maybe Rishabh Pant after he is fully fit or KL Rahul or Sanju Samson or Ishan Kishan,” the 46-year-old added.