Aakash Chopra Picks Mohammed Shami Over Shardul Thakur For India's 1st ODI against Australia

Ahead of the first India vs Australia ODI, former batsman Aakash Chopra has predicted India’s Playing XI. India and Australia will resume their rivalry in the 50-over format on Friday (September 22) when they lock horns against each other in the first ODI in Mohali.

It will be the last assignment for both teams before they launch their World Cup campaign next month. Both teams will be using the series to finalise their best and strongest elevens for the World Cup. And ahead of the series-opener, Aakash Chopra has revealed the playing XI that he would like to see for Team India.

Team India will be without some of their biggest names for the series opener. Captain Rohit Sharma as well as Virat Kohli, Hardik Pandya and Kuldeep Yadav have been rested for the first two ODIs of the three-match series. In Rohit’s absence, wicketkeeper-batsman KL Rahul will be leading the side.

Aakash Chopra’s India Playing XI:

Throwing his support behind Mohammed Shami, Aakash Chopra has said that India should prefer the experienced pacer ahead of Shardul Thakur. During the recently concluded Asia Cup, the Indian team management preferred Thakur ahead of Shami. The main reason behind the call was Thakur’s batting ability.

Thakur played 4 games in the Asia Cup while Shami could play in only two. However, Aakash Chopra has urged the Indian team management to pick Shami over Thakur against Australia. Speaking on his YouTube channel, Aakash Chopra said:

“I feel Shami should play without any doubt. When you play on a very flat pitch, batting generally tends to cancel each other out. Both sides have good batting line-ups. You might not need the No. 9. You will have [Ravichandran] Ashwin or [Washington] Sundar at No. 8. At least at No. 9, play a proper bowler.”

“I am not saying that Shardul is not a proper bowler, but play Shami, Siraj, Bumrah – go with your three proper fast bowlers. If this is a 325-350 pitch, you will need bowlers. If you don’t play Tilak Varma, which is a possibility, then you won’t have the sixth bowling option.

“You need five bowlers, who do not have a chance of having a bad day. If they have a bad spell, they can actually bounce back,” he added.

“I expect Shami to do that a little more. I have lesser hopes from Shardul in that aspect. I will go with Shami, Siraj, Bumrah.”

Talking about the rest of the team, Aakash Chopra picked Shubman Gill, Ishan Kishan, Shreyas Iyer and Tilak Varma as the top four. KL Rahul was picked for the number five spot followed by Suryakumar Yadav and Ravindra Jadeja. He also included Ravichandran Ashwin in the team.

Aakash Chopra’s predicted XI for 1st IND vs AUS ODI

Shubman Gill, Ishan Kishan, Shreyas Iyer, Tilak Varma, KL Rahul (c & wk), Suryakumar Yadav, Ravindra Jadeja, Ravichandran Ashwin, Mohammed Shami, Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammed Siraj.