IPL 2020: Aakash Chopra picks his ideal playing XI for Sunrisers Hyderabad


IPL 2020: Aakash Chopra picks his ideal playing XI for Sunrisers Hyderabad

Aakash Chopra

Akash-Chopra-IPL
Aakash Chopra thinks SRH will struggle to make it to the top four.

Former Indian cricketer Aakash Chopra has picked his ideal playing XI for Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) in the upcoming 2020 Indian Premier League (IPL).

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In the Sunrisers Hyderabad playing XI, Chopra’s first pick was captain David Warner. He explained that his stats are better than some of the Indian batsmen. Chopra also stated that Warner could be the stand-out performer for the team.

“I will start with the captain, David Warner. He is an IPL legend, his stats are even better than Indian batsmen. Last year he said before the tournament that he will score 500 runs, and he scored more than that,” the cricketer turned commentator said.

Chopra picked Jonny Bairstow to open the batting with Warner as the left-right combination will help team’s cause.

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“With him, I have Jonny Bairstow, which makes it a left-right combination. The last time two batsmen scored a century in the same IPL match, they were the ones,” he said.

Furthermore, Chopra named Manish Pandey and Vijay Shankar for Hyderabad’s XI to bat at No. 3 and No. 4 position. He picked Virat Singh for the number fifth spot.

“At No.3, I have Manish Pandey and Vijay Shankar at No.4,” he said.

“At No.5, I have kept Virat Singh. He is a player from Jharkhand and idolises MS Dhoni. He hits a lot of boundaries but has not played in the IPL before,” Chopra added.

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Aakash Chopra’s pick for all-rounder and bowlers

Sunrisers Hyderabad team during IPL match.

Considering conditions in UAE, the reputed commentator chose Mohammad Nabi over Mitchell March at No. 6 spot. He also bemoaned the lack of experienced Indian batsmen for that position.

“At No.6, you ideally want another batsman but they don’t have any experienced Indian batsman. Considering the conditions in UAE, we will have to go with Mohammad Nabi over Mitchell Marsh. He can do the finisher’s role considering his form in the CPL,” Chopra suggested.

However, for the No. 7 position, Chopra named another Afghani player in the form of Rashid Khan.

“Along with him, we will have Rashid Khan. He can play big shots but is he a No.7 batsman, that is the only problem that I see with this team,” he said in the video post.

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Bhuvneshwar Kumar

Jharkhand left-arm spinner Shahbaz Nadeem found a place in Chopra’s Sunrisers Hyderabad playing XI and he also named experienced Bhuvneshwar Kumar. Chopra believes that Kumar, who is making a comeback from injury, will help the team with his experience.

“At No.8, I have got Shahbaz Nadeem. Then we will have Bhuvneshwar Kumar who has also captained the team. He is an experienced bowler and hopefully, he is fine coming back from injury,” he said.

Khaleel Ahmed was his second last selection. He opined that Ahmed, being a left-handed bowler, will provide variety to the attack.

“At No.10, I have kept Khaleel Ahmed who will give the left-arm option. He can use this as a platform to come back to the Indian team,” he said.

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Chopra said that Sunrisers Hyderabad could twirl between Siddarth Kaul and Sandeep Sharma for the final bowler’s spot

“Last but not least, you could go with Siddarth Kaul or Sandeep Sharma. Both of them give almost identical performances, so you can rotate them. I think they will struggle a little to make the top four, they don’t look like a tournament-winning side to me. I feel David Warner will be the stand-out performer for Sunrisers Hyderabad in the IPL, ” Chopra signed off.

Also read: IPL 2020: Aakash Chopra picks CSK’s playing XI