Former Indian Test opener Aakash Chopra feels Hardik Pandya’s captaincy will be in the spotlight in the match against Sunrisers Hyderabad on Wednesday. Pandya led Mumbai Indians for the first time after making a move from Gujarat Titans in an all-cash trade deal.
Meanwhile, Pandya opened the bowling innings in the opening match against Gujarat Titans at the Narendra Modi Stadium, Ahmedabad on Sunday. Pandya gave the fourth over of the innings to Jasprit Bumrah, which raised a lot of questions on his captaincy.
The all-rounder conceded 30 runs in the three overs he bowled and also went wicketless against his former team.
Aakash Chopra said on his YouTube Channel, “Hardik Pandya will be the No. 1 player in focus. Hardik Pandya’s captaincy will be in focus because there will be a question every time about how he is doing it. You are looking at it with a magnifying glass at times. Some people like something and others find it wrong.
“It remains to be seen whether they will play Luke Wood, and if they do, will they give him just one over? Will he again take the new ball in his hand? You have Jasprit Bumrah, Luke Wood and Gerald Coetzee. If you have a fast-bowling attack like that, should Hardik bowl with the new ball?” the former India opener added.
Meanwhile, Ishan Kishan was dismissed for a duck against Gujarat Titans. The renowned commentator reckons the pressure on Kishan will mount with every match. Kishan was recently excluded from the BCCI central contract list for missing matches for India and his state in the Ranji Trophy.
“The second player I am again going to look towards is Ishan Kishan. He came to the last match with a huge reputation and expectation that he would score runs. Azmatullah Omarzai dismissed him quickly. As every match passes, the pressure will mount. So Ishan Kishan will be a major focal point for me,” he explained.
Furthermore, Chopra is looking forward to seeing Luke Wood in action. The left-arm youngster conceded 25 runs in the two overs he bowled against GT. The reputed commentator feels the Englishman can be successful if he bowls in the Powerplay overs.
“I am picking a slightly out-of-the-box player as the third one. I am picking Luke Wood. Bumrah is bowling well in any case and Gerald Coetzee also had a good debut, Piyush Chawla is bowling decently, but Luke Wood has a huge amount of potential. If he bowls two or three overs in the powerplay, he will pick up one or two wickets,” Chopra elaborated.
MI will take on SRH on Wednesday at the Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium, Hyderabad.
