Former Indian Test opener Aakash Chopra has questioned India’s playing XI after the hosts registered an eight-wicket win against the West Indies at the Greenfield International Stadium, Thiruvananthapuram on Sunday.
Chopra questioned the team management for playing Naman Dhir at number eight and not playing a specialist bowler. Dhir, who made his ODI debut, returned with figures of 0-33 in five overs he bowled against the visitors.
Chopra said playing a seam-bowling all-rounder like Harshit Rana at number eight makes sense as he can bowl his quota of full overs and can also contribute with the bat. However, Dhir is a part-time spinner and he is a defensive option with the ball.
Aakash Chopra said on his YouTube Channel, “You compromise on that fifth bowler so easily, so comfortably, that I have to ask the question: is this really that necessary? I think it’s a defensive approach. If you get Harshit Rana at No. 8, I’m fine with that because he can bat and bowl his 10 overs. But if you get Naman Dhir at No. 8, he is a five-over bowler. He is not your primary bowler. He is not going to give you wickets.”
Chopra said the West Indies could have posted around 350 runs on the board if Kuldeep Yadav had not come up with impressive figures of 4-40.
“Because I feel that with Naman Dhir and Nitish Kumar Reddy, when you used the fifth bowler and he gave away 78 runs, that’s when the match started slipping out of your hands. If Kuldeep Yadav hadn’t done the job and taken those four wickets, that team wasn’t going to stop at 295. They would have scored 335 or 340. I mean, 340 or 350, who knows where the game would have gone?”
Chopra further questioned the team’s think tank to pick a batter at number eight and not play Mohammed Siraj in the final XI.
“What do good teams do? They continue to improve. They strive to get better. And I think that is something the Indian team needs to think about. Because when you look at the Indian XI, you see Naman Dhir, you see Nitish Kumar Reddy, and you don’t see Mohammed Siraj, you have to ask a question. Does the batter at No. 8 really have to be there? Is it that mandatory? Is it really a matter of life and death that, if he isn’t there, things won’t work?
The second ODI between India and the West Indies will be played at the Barsapara Cricket Stadium, Guwahati, on Wednesday.
