The fifth Test between India and England will begin on July 1 in Edgbaston.
While England has already announced their playing XI, there remains a huge dilemma over selection matters in the Indian team. Jasprit Bumrah was named the captain of the Indian team after Rohit Sharma failed to recover from Covid infection.
While India is yet to name an opener to replace Rohit Sharma at the top with options like Cheteshwar Pujara, KS Bharat, and Hanuma Vihari available; there is also a question of India’s bowling makeup and whether R Ashwin will play with Ravindra Jadeja or only one spinner will be employed.
Aakash Chopra on his YouTube channel said that R Ashwin should be a part of the playing XI, even in a case where the team management is only picking one spinner. He went against the popular opinion of Jadeja being the first-choice spinner thanks to his brilliant batting abilities and said that he would rather have R Ashwin and Shardul Thakur in the XI.
"I will play both Shardul Thakur and Ashwin and ask Jadeja to rest a bit. If you are batting first then I will play the pace trio of Shami, Bumrah, and Siraj. But if there are seaming conditions, I would think hard and would be tempted to play Umesh Yadav as he has the knack of picking wickets," Chopra said on his YouTube channel.
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Reflecting on the England team picked for the match, Chopra was quite impressed with the hosts' line-up, especially when compared to the team they had last year during the first four Tests.
"Last year, they had a weak batting line-up. It was only Joe Root and no one else as everyone else looked like walking wickets. But this time they are playing with a completely different mindset. But I feel if you get seaming conditions and a good bowling attack in front of you, this strategy won't work. But the truth is they are winning, batting is in form and they have the attacking intent," said the former India opener.
India already leads 2-1 in the series, and even a draw would be enough to win the series. However, England will be coming into the match with nothing to lose attitude.
(Times Now News inputs)