Shardul Thakur seems to be just making up numbers at the moment: Aakash Chopra

Aakash Chopra opened up on the playing combination of India for the Bangladesh match to be played on October 19 in Pune. Chopra stated that they don't need an extra spinner on the team and added how Shardul Thakur is just making up numbers at the moment. Chopra believes that Thakur isn't playing any specific role in the team currently. Chopra also talked about the possibility of Shakib Al Hasan not playing in the India clash and how important is his role for his national side.

Hosting JioCinema’s daily sports show ‘#AAKASHVANI,’ Aakash Chopra predicted how the Indian playing XI may look like against Bangladesh today. “Looking at the history of the Pune track, we don’t need an extra spinner in the eleven. We have already spoken about Shardul (Thakur) not being utilized as a bowler fully. He seems to be just making up the numbers at the moment. There’s no specific role that he’s playing. So that’s an important question that the Indian think-tank has to answer.

They may be faced with the situation as to whether they should play Shardul or give Mohammed Shami a chance. Or looking at the prevailing conditions, they may also ask themselves if Ashwin should be included in the line-up. Personally speaking, I don’t see Ashwin playing because spinners are hardly effective on this pitch. Also, the bottom line is we may keep discussing the likely XI, but the think-tank may field the same team that has played previously in the tournament.” 

Chopra also spoke about the problems that Bangladesh is currently facing. “There’s a question mark over Shakib’s availability for the match. So, if he plays, it’s a good thing for Bangladesh. But if he does not play, it’s very bad news for them because their middle order has been struggling for consistency. They may promote Mehidy Hasan Miraz in the batting order and hope he succeeds.”