Pakistan Great makes big claim over discarded Indian star

Former Pakistan player Danish Kaneria has made a big claim about underdog India player Yuzvendra Chahal who was banned from the Asia Cup squad for the National selectors last week..

According to the Danish Kaneria, Yuzvendra Chahal does not deserve a place in the indian cricket team since it has been quite inconsistent in the format for over 50 years.

“Yuzvendra Chahal doesn’t deserve to be in the India team right now. He has been very inconsistent. Kuldeep Yadav, on the other hand, has picked up wickets regularly and can be effective at intermissions. He the selectors took the right Call by going with Kuldeep to Chahal.”

The views of the retired Pakistani cricketer are interesting, considering that many other ex-players have called the omission of Yuzvendra Chahal disappointing.

The latest to criticize the move was South African legend AB de Villiers.

The former South Africa captain, who spent considerable time with the Indian bowler during his stint with Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) in the Indian Premier League, called the move “disappointing”.

“Chahal has been eliminated and the selectors have made their intentions clear who they will choose. It’s a bit of a disappointing drop for me, Yuzi is always very helpful and it’s great to have the leg spin option on your team. We know how skilled he is,” AB de Villiers said on his YouTube channel.

Over the years, Yuzvendra Chahal has proven to be a match winner for India in white ball cricket. Notably, the Haryana modifier has amassed 121 wickets in 72 ODIs for India, with the best figures being 6/42 against Australia in Melbourne in 2019.

Furthermore, many pundits believe that wrist-spinners are a dying commodity in international cricket, especially in limited-overs games. Around the world, most teams have used them to disrupt proceedings during intervening games, primarily to seize the opponent’s wickets and keep their drive towards a grand total in check.

Yuzvendra Chahal has been a vital cog in India’s scheme in T20I and Over-50 games due to his ability to take wickets, something rohit sharma and manager Rahul Dravid have often claimed that he is vital to the team after the initial power play.

AB de Villiers is not the first cricketer to raise questions with Indian selectors about his omission from the 17-man Indian cricket team selected for the Asian Cup.

Indian great Sourav Ganguly, Australian legend Matthew Hayden, cricketer turned commentator Irfan Pathan, legendary Harbhajan Singh and cricket pundit Aakash Chopra were not happy with Yuzvendra Chahal’s exclusion from the team’s Asia Cup squad. from India.

“There are some important omissions. Chahal in particular, that leg-spinning player is an excellent player and it must be difficult for the selectors because they also have another one in Kuldeep (Yadav)…. he is a magnificent player. So, they chose that option as an option,” said Matthew Hayden in an interaction with PTI.

“I would choose Chahal. I would always choose the ones that turn the wrists,” Sourav Ganguly said in an interview with Hindustan Times.

Sharing his views on the matter on X, formerly Twitter, Irfan Pathan posted: “The selectors are concerned that Bumrah and Prasidh will return from a long layoff. That is one of the two reasons why you will see the Indian team play with an extra pitcher who can hit. I would have Chahal on my team. What do you think?”

Former India opener Aakash Chopra reflected on the development, predicting that Yuzvendra Chahal’s chances of securing a place in the Rohit Sharma-led squad for the World Cup in October were bleak.

“In this tournament you’re only going to have one player that spins the wrist. I feel like you won’t be able to create a place for Yuzi (Yuzvendra) Chahal for the World Cup as well because if he wasn’t created here, he won’t be created there either unless there’s an injury,” Aakash said. Chopra said on his YouTube channel.

“I feel like we have a slight obsession with needing a No. 8 batsman. We have Jaddu (Ravindra Jadeja), Axar (Patel) and Shardul Thakur, who can hit and bowl. So in the 7th and 8th places you want all-rounders and that is why you cannot create a place for Yuzi Chahal ”, he summed up.

Unlike Aakash Chopra, legendary Indian player Harbhajan Singh was optimistic about Yuzvendra Chahal’s inclusion in the World Cup squad.

Harbhajan Singh even called Yuzvendra Chahal the best Indian bowler in shorter forms of cricket.

“The only thing I feel the team is missing is the absence of Yuzvendra Chahal. A player who spins his legs and who can deflect the ball. If we are talking about genuine roulettes, I don’t think there is any roulette in India better than Chahal in white ball formats. Yes, the last few games of his were not good, but that doesn’t make him a bad player,” commented Harbhajan Singh.

“I think his presence on the team was necessary. I hope the doors are not closed. It is important to consider it for the World Cup because the tournament is in India. Chahal has proven to be a match winner. I can understand that his form is not good, so you may have given him rest. But I think if he had been with the team, his confidence would have remained intact. Any player who returns after being eliminated, the pressure to perform is always there, ”he argued.

Meanwhile, captain Rohit Sharma explained the logic behind Yuzvendra Chahal’s omission from the Asia Cup squad, emphasizing that Axar Patel’s better hitting ability played to his advantage.

Unlike Yuzvendra Chahal, Axar Patel has made significant batting contributions in the lower order of the Indian Premier League (IPL) and for the Indian cricket team in international matches.

“We also want someone who can hit at number eight and nine. Axar has had a great run with the bat in all formats and in the IPL,” explained Rohit Sharma.

“We had a deep discussion about an out of series. And also on a leg-turner. The question really comes down to the batting option at 8 and 9,” said the India captain.

“We want someone who can hit in that spot. Being Axar Axar, he had a good run this year and batted well in white ball cricket especially. He didn’t get many chances in red ball cricket, but he batted well in white ball cricket, especially in IPL. On the West Indies tour, he couldn’t get many chances because he bats at the back. With him there, he allows us the option of having a lefty first who we can use the order to and come in to play the spinners. He can do that for us,” Rohit Sharma explained.

“We also thought about the non-spinners, Ashwin and Washi, but right now Chahal has to miss because we can only have 17 players there. The only way we could have done it (bring it) is by taking out one of the seamers. We can’t really do that because the closers are going to play a big role in the next two months, considering the number of games in the next two months. Some of them come back after a long time. We wanted to get them involved and see what they can do,” he noted.

“That being said, no door is closed to anyone at this time. Anyone can enter at any time. Chahal has played a lot of white ball cricket, if we feel we need him for the World Cup we can try to see how we can squeeze him out. This is the case for Ashwin and Washi. The option is open to everyone”, stressed Rohit Sharma.

India will kick off their Asia Cup campaign against arch-rivals Pakistan on September 2. The two teams will meet at the Pallekele International Cricket Stadium in Sri Lanka.