IND vs ENG: I Will Play Both Shardul Thakur And Ravichandran Ashwin- Aakash Chopra Drops Ravindra Jadeja From His Bowling Lineup For The 5th Test Vs England

Former Indian opening batsman Aakash Chopra has taken the extremely ambitious step of leaving star all-rounder Ravindra Jadeja out of his predicted bowlers for the fifth Test against England at Edgbaston.

Jadeja hit 175* and took 10 wickets in the same Test just a few weeks ago. However, the 44-year-old believes the No. 1 Test all-rounder must be rested and should be replaced by experienced off-spinner Ravichandran Ashwin.

Aakash Chopra discussed why he chose to play Ashwin and Shardul Thakur as the two all-rounders in a video posted to his YouTube channel. Additionally, he discussed the pace attack he would use and said:

“In exchange for Jadeja taking a little break, I will play both Shardul Thakur and Ashwin. If you get to bat first, I will go with the pace trio of Shami, Bumrah, and Siraj. However, considering Umesh Yadav’s talent for plucking wickets, I might give it some thought if the pitch was seaming.”

Aakash Chopra discusses England’s new batting style:

Aakash Chopra thinks that if the circumstances help the bowlers, England’s strategy may not work. He stated,

“They had a weak batting lineup last year. Everyone else appeared to be walking wickets, except for Joe Root. This time, however, they are approaching the game with a completely different mindset. However, I believe that if you have seaming conditions and a strong bowling attack in front of you, this strategy will fail. But the truth is that they are winning, their batting is in form, and they are attacking.”

The fifth Test, the one between England and India that has been rescheduled, will start on July 1 at Edgbaston in Birmingham. Due to the COVID-19 fear, the final match of the two teams’ Test series from the previous year was postponed. The Indian team presently has a 2-1 advantage in the series.

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