On July 5, 2023, BCCI announced the Indian squad for the upcoming five-match T20I series against West Indies. In this squad, almost all the seniors including Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli have been rested. Hardik Pandya will lead the team and it will be interesting to see how he manages to use the young Indians.
Former Indian opener and one of the best commentators, Aakash Chopra is not happy with the inclusion of Tilak Varma in the Indian squad. Chopra feels that if the current Indian side was looking for someone to provide stability in the lower-middle order, Rinku Singh would have been a more solid choice.
Rinku performed exceptionally well as a finisher in the IPL 2023 and was expected to be selected for the Indian team for the first time. However, when the squad was announced yesterday it was surprising for everyone. Tilak Varma and Yashasi Jaiswal got the maiden call-up for India while the sensational batter Rinku Singh was overlooked.
Aakash Chopra talked about this on his youtube channel and said, “In the middle order – Suryakumar Yadav, Sanju Samson, Tilak Varma, and Hardik Pandya. I don’t think the team is thinking of playing Tilak Varma at No. 3. If they were searching for a player to bat after Hardik Pandya, then Rinku Singh could have been a better choice unless Tilak Varma will play at No. 3.”
Aakash Chopra said that Tilak might not get a chance at no.3 -“You might want to play Tilak Varma down the order because whether it is Ishan Kishan or Sanju Samson, the two wicket keepers you have picked, their best place for batting is in the top three.”
He further added, “If you keep them in the top three, Tilak Varma will have to go down. If he goes down, you don’t want to send Suryakumar Yadav lower than No. 4, ideally at three and last at four.”
