Former Indian Test opener Aakash Chopra wants Ramandeep Singh to make his T20I debut against South Africa in the third T20I at SuperSport Park, Centurion. With India having a long tail as Arshdeep Singh was batting at number eight, Chopra wants the team to include Ramandeep Singh.
Singh has scored 170 runs in 13 IPL innings at an average of 28.33 and a strike rate of 166.67. Ramandeep is a livewire on the field and can also save extra runs for the team.
India played with Arshdeep Singh, Avesh Khan, Ravi Bishnoi, and Varun Chakravarthy as the four specialist bowlers in the first two T20Is against the Proteas with Axar Patel and Hardik Pandya as the two all-rounders.
In the second T20I, Hardik Pandya declined singles to Arshdeep Singh as he tried to hit the boundaries by farming the strike. On the other hand, Gerald Coetzee, who was batting at number nine, played a fine cameo of 9-ball 19 to help his team get over the line in the run-chase of 125.
“I feel India should get Ramandeep Singh to make his debut. I tell you why. What did Gerald Coetzee do? He came to bat at No. 9 but he can bat. If you see India’s situation in the first two matches, you lost six wickets for 35 runs in the first match and scored 30-35 runs in the last five overs in the second match,” Aakash Chopra said on his YouTube Channel.
“Fewer runs are being scored because no one is left in the end. Tail has absolutely no role to play. You don’t have that much depth. You cannot have four No. 11 batters in T20 cricket. You have to have somebody who bats decently at No. 8. So I feel Ramandeep Singh should be played,” Chopra added.
On the other hand, Axar Patel was given a solitary over in the second game by Suryakumar Yadav but he was given a batting promotion.
“What is Axar Patel’s role in the composition of the XI? That is the big overarching question. If you see Suryakumar Yadav’s win record, he has been absolutely outstanding. He is a good captain. Then why is he not using Axar Patel properly? I am convinced that they are not doing right with him,” he said.
The renowned commentator added that SKY will be forced to use Axar Patel more if Ramandeep Singh replaces Ravi Bishnoi in the final XI.
“If you are playing three spinners and we are saying you can play three spinners because the opposing team is not playing spin well, why don’t you give more overs to Axar Patel in such a scenario? I feel one change might correct two things. If you play Ramandeep here, you will have to give overs to Axar,” he observed.
The third T20I of the series between India and South Africa will be played at the SuperSport Park, Centurion on Wednesday.
