Virat Kohli
Virat Kohli (Image Credit: Twitter)

Former Indian opener Aakash Chopra has picked Royal Challengers Bangalore skipper Virat Kohli and SunRisers Hyderabad leg-spinner Rashid Khan as his prime contenders to win the coveted orange and purple cap in IPL 2021.

The 14th edition of the Indian Premier League is all set to take place between April 09-May 30 with defending champions Mumbai Indians and Virat Kohli’s Royal Challengers Bangalore to open the season in what should be a high-voltage encounter at the M.A Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai.

With less than a week to go before IPL 2021 takes centerstage, Aakash Chopra conducted a Question-Answer session on Sunday where he answered a plethora of fan’s queries with regards to the cash-rich league.

When asked about his favorites to win the orange and purple cap, Chopra picked Virat Kohli and Rashid Khan.

 

Virat Kohli to play as an opener in IPL 2021

Virat Kohli
Virat Kohli (Image Credit: Twitter)

Virat Kohli will be opening the innings for the Royal Challengers Bangalore and given his past record at the top of the order and his current form, one can expect the charismatic cricketer to pile up a lot of runs in IPL 2021.

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Kohli, who smashed a match-winning 80 while opening the innings in the series-decider against England, has opened the innings on 61 occasions in the IPL.

The RCB skipper has smashed all his five T20 tons while opening the innings. In 61 innings, Kohli has racked up 2345 runs at an average of 47.86 and a strike rate of 140.17 which includes 15 50s and five three-figure scores.

IPL, Aakash Chopra, Rashid Khan
Rashid Khan (Image Credit: Twitter)

As far as Rashid Khan is concerned, the Aghan leg-spinner has been on the bedrock of the SunRisers Hyderabad bowling unit since his debut.

Khan finished as the leading wicket-taker for the Orange Army last year. In 16 matches, he claimed 20 wickets at an average of 17.20 and a barely believable economy rate of 5.37.

With SRH set to play nine out of their 14 league games on spin-friendly wickets, Aakash Chopra reckoned that the leg-spinner will do something special in IPL 2021.

“I feel he (Rashid Khan) is going to do something special. He is a sensational player. Five matches are in Chennai, and four matches are in Delhi, and he”ll find a lot of turn on both the pitches. He has also played a lot more cricket recently than his counterparts, so he’ll be ready. My prediction is he’ll be the purple cap holder this season as well”. said Aakash Chopra in a video published on his official Facebook page.

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