Former Indian opener Aakash Chopra believes that both Indian and Australian players are very much less interested in playing in the three-match ODI series and asserted that the players are playing matches due to the schedule not the interest in preparing for the marquee event in the country.
The team management has been extremely cautious in managing the workload of the players heading into the marquee event in the country, as they have rested the likes of Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma, Hardik Pandya, and Kuldeep Yadav for the first two games of the series. Similarly, Australia also rested their key players throughout the three-match series ahead of the World Cup.
Speaking on his YouTube Channel, Aakash Chopra raised his concerns about the availability of the key players for the series against Australia and questioned the team’s playing combination heading into the final game in Rajkot and believes that Mitchell Starc would play in the game, as he addressed media ahead of the 3rd ODI.
“Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli are back for the third ODI, but many players are not there. Hardik Pandya has not come back, Shardul Thakur has gone [home] and Shubman Gill is also not there. Axar Patel is still not available”.
“One really can’t understand what’ going on and how many players are there or not there. Mitchell Starc had come for the press conference, so he should definitely play. Then again, one is not sure, but it at least seems like he will play,” Aakash Chopra said.
The Indian team will have a long World Cup campaign on home soil because they will play their matches in nine different cities. Before the important ICC competition, the team management had been looking for ways to keep their players fresh and Australia has been facing issues related to the injury and rotated their players in the first two games.
It’s Like The Papers That Are Set By The School Before The Board Exams – Aakash Chopra
Aakash Chopra feels that Indian team players need to be fresh ahead of the World Cup in India and also questioned their decision to play a three-match ODI series just before the mega event and asserted that both the teams haven’t taken the bilateral series important heading into the important event in the country.
“We are on the verge of the World Cup, but why is this game being played? Are you getting that feeling? From the behavior of both teams, one gets the feeling that they are asking – why are you making us play? What’s the reason? Can you please elaborate a little more? It’s like the papers that are set by the school before the board exams. You don’t feel interested. This bilateral series is like that. It’s happening, but one seems to be taking it seriously,” Aakash Chopra added.
Indian skipper Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli would return to the Indian squad for the final game and the Indian veteran’s form with the bat alongside Shubman Gill and Virat Kohli will largely determine the team’s performance in the ODI World Cup in the country.