MS Dhoni snubbed! Aakash Chopra reveals his combined India-England Test XI of the 21st century

As the Anderson-Tendulkar Trophy heats up with England leading 2-1, former Indian cricketer Aakash Chopra has dropped a bombshell by unveiling his dream combined India-England Test XI of the 21st century. He raised many eyebrows by leaving out Rohit Sharma and MS Dhoni from his team.

Aakash Chopra’s combined India-England Test XI of the 21st century was full of surprises as he went with impact over names. Former explosive Indian opener Virender Sehwag was paired with England’s all-time leading run-getter Alastair Cook to open the innings.

No MS Dhoni, no Rohit Sharma in Aakash Chopra's combined India-England Test XI of the 21st century

Chopra said on his YouTube channel, “Who should be the openers? I think there is no question or doubt about that. You will have to keep Virender Sehwag on one side. He has two triple centuries and a lot of runs to his name. Along with him, no one is challenging Alastair Cook either. One keeps hitting, and the other plays stubbornly, but both score big runs.”

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For the crucial No. 3 slot, Chopra picked India's dependable wall Rahul Dravid over England's modern run-machine Joe Root. Well, the cricket pandit’s middle order is packed with cricketing royalty. At No. 4, the ageless master Sachin Tendulkar was an obvious choice.

Chopra further turned the head by selecting Virat Kohli over England’s flamboyant Kevin Pietersen for the number 5 position in his combined India-England Test XI of the 21st century. India’s vice-captain and wicketkeeper-batter Rishabh Pant, who is known for his fearless approach, edged out all English keepers to secure the No. 6 spot in Chopra’s dream XI.

Aakash Chopra reveals why he picked Ravichandran Ashwin

England captain Ben Stokes also found a place in the commentator’s team, as he was in the all-rounder’s role, over the Ashes hero Andrew Flintoff. Chopra handed the spin duties to the ever-reliable Ravichandran Ashwin, whose dominance in all conditions got the nod over England’s Graeme Swann and fellow Indians like Harbhajan Singh.

Explaining Ashwin’s selection, Chopra said, “After that, I have kept Ravichandran Ashwin's name. I will play with only one spinner if the matches are in England. You can think about Graeme Swann as well, but how can you leave Ashwin out? You can think about Harbhajan Singh as well, but just for the weight of performances over a very long period of time, I will have to pick Ravichandran Ashwin.”

Aakash Chopra's pace attack features England’s ever-reliable James Anderson and India’s lethal Jasprit Bumrah. The final spot in the XI grabbed the attention as he suggested either Stuart Broad for English pitches or Ravindra Jadeja for spin-friendly Indian tracks.

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The commentator explained, “At No. 11, if the matches are happening in England, I will think about Zaheer Khan, but keep Stuart Broad. He is a phenomenal bowler in these conditions. In India, I will need another spinner. Then I will keep Ravindra Jadeja's name.”

Aakash Chopra's India-England combined 21st-century Test XI:

Virender Sehwag, Alastair Cook, Rahul Dravid, Sachin Tendulkar, Virat Kohli, Rishabh Pant, Ben Stokes, Ravichandran Ashwin, James Anderson, Jasprit Bumrah, and Stuart Broad/Ravindra Jadeja.