Published 13:17 IST, June 30th 2020
Aakash Chopra impresses MS Dhoni fans this time by picking him as all-time IPL XI captain
Cricketer-turned-commentator Aakash Chopra recently picked former Indian skipper MS Dhoni as the captain and wicketkeeper of his all-time IPL playing XI.
Cricketer-turned-commentator Aakash Chopra recently took to his YouTube channel to pick his all-time Indian Premier League (IPL) playing XI. The cricket expert followed the standard IPL playing XI protocols by selecting seven Indian cricketers and four overseas stars. Caught between MS Dhoni and Rohit Sharma to grant the leadership honours of his side, Aakash Chopra decided to go with the veteran wicketkeeper-batsman for his numerous success at Chennai Super Kings (CSK) campaign.
Aakash Chopra reveals his all-time IPL XI
On Monday, June 29, Aakash Chopra revealed his all-time IPL XI by picking some of the biggest names in the history of the tournament. He named current CSK leader MS Dhoni as the captain of his side. Moreover, Aakash Chopra also handed MS Dhoni the wicketkeeping honours in his all-time IPL XI. Even though Rohit Sharma has led Mumbai Indians to four IPL victories in comparison to MS Dhoni’s three, the 42-year old picked the latter by saying that the former Indian skipper has had the experience of 11 years at captaincy.
Among his opening batsmen, Aakash Chopra picked three-time Orange Cap winner David Warner instead of leading IPL centurion Chris Gayle. For justifying his Australian pick, he said that the current Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) captain has been one of the most consistent opening batsmen across all IPL seasons.
Aakash Chopra also said that even though Chris Gayle has been an explosive batsman, David Warner is “not behind anyone”. The commentator picked Indian opening batsman and Mumbai Indians skipper Rohit Sharma as Warner’s batting partner at the top of the order. Aakash Chopra says that he would always pick Rohit Sharma as his opener even though the dynamic cricketer serves as a middle-order batsman for his team in IPL.
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Aakash Chopra’s middle-order comprises of IPL veterans like Suresh Raina, Virat Kohli, AB de Villiers and MS Dhoni. His line-up includes two spinners in the form of Harbhajan Singh and Sunil Narine while his pace battery includes Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Lasith Malinga and Jasprit Bumrah. While not included in his playing XI, Aakash Chopra named Gautam Gambhir and Andre Russell as the 12th and 13th man of his side respectively.
Selecting MS Dhoni as captain would make many of the cricketer's fans pleased with Aakash Chopra. Last month, the commentator claimed that since he did not select Dhoni in India's T20 World Cup XI, such were his fans' extreme reactions that he had to quit social media for a few days for the issue to die down. Chopra claimed that die-hard MS Dhoni fans 'abused' not just him but his family as well, which got personal.
Aakash Chopra all-time playing XI:
David Warner, Rohit Sharma, Suresh Raina, Virat Kohli, AB de Villiers, MS Dhoni (captain and wicketkeeper), Harbhajan Singh, Sunil Narine, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Lasith Malinga and Jasprit Bumrah.
Image credits: Aakash Chopra Twitter and IPLT20.COM
Updated 13:17 IST, June 30th 2020