IPL 2022: Aakash Chopra opts to play XIs for SRH vs LSG clash
Former Indian striker Aakash Chopra reckons Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) shouldn’t open batting with Abhishek Sharma in their 2022 IPL contest against Lucknow Super Giants (LSG). According to him, the scheme does not make much sense.
After being beaten by 61 points in their first IPL 2022 encounter, Hyderabad will face Lucknow at DY Patil Stadium in Navi Mumbai on Monday.
Analyzing the SRH team, Chopra suggested a few changes to the batting order. Speaking on his YouTube channel, he said:
“There is no sense in opening the batting with Abhishek Sharma. Don’t open with him. Instead, open with Rahul Tripathi and Washington Sundar. Washi beats beautifully and he is a top notch batsman. He is wasted lower in order Kane Williamson, Nicholas Pooran, Aiden Markram will complete my Top 5. I will beat Abhishek Sharma at 6 and Abdul Samad at 7.
On the bowling attack, he said he would face South African left-arm point guard Marco Jansen ahead of Romario Shepherd of the West Indies. Chopra added:
“Among the bowlers, I would play against Marco Jansen in front of Romario Shepherd. Then, of course, SRH has three point guards in Bhuvi (Bhuvneshwar Kumar), T Natarajan and Umran Malik.
In Hyderabad’s opening encounter against Rajasthan, Sundar was hammered for 47 in his three overs and Natarajan went for 43 in his four, but the latter claimed a few wickets.
“In my playing XI for LSG, there is no place for Manish Pandey” – Aakash Chopra
Although Lucknow chased 211 against Chennai Super Kings (CSK) in their previous match, Chopra said he would still make some changes to the team. The former cricketer didn’t pick out-of-form Manish Pandey in his favorite playing XI.
Sharing his thoughts on the LSG squad, the 44-year-old said:
“In my playing XI for LSG, there is no place for Manish Pandey. My top three would be KL Rahul, Quinton de Kock and Evin Lewis. I would hit Deepak Hooda at four and push Ayush Badoni at five. He beats too low at the moment Jason Holder will arrive at six o’clock and Krunal Pandya at seven o’clock.
Chopra also picked Ankit Rajpoot as one of his frontrunners, adding:
“For the bowlers, I would go with Ravi Bishnoi, Avesh Khan, Andrew Tye and also play Ankit Rajpoot. This way, Lucknow would have four bowlers and three all-rounders.
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Although LSG beat CSK in their previous IPL 2022 encounter, their bowlers proved costly. Dushmantha Chameera went for 49 in his four while Tye conceded 40.
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