IND vs SL: Aakash Chopra lists out his batting order of Team India for the Lucknow T20I

After the successful white-ball leg against West Indies, Team India is all set to host Sri Lanka for the three-match T20I series. The opening match will start today at Bharat Ratna Shri Atal Bihari Vajpayee Ekana Cricket Stadium in Lucknow.

Although, fans would see a few changes in the Indian side – that locked horns against the Windies. Senior batter Virat Kohli and wicketkeeper-batter Rishabh Pant have been rested for the series, while KL Rahul, Suryakumar Yadav, and Deepak Chahar have been ruled out of the T20Is due to their respective injuries.

In the absence of the aforementioned star players, some new faces are expected to come in the side. Speaking about the same, former India opener, Aakash Chopra has picked his batting order for the first T20I.

Notably, the series also marks the return of wicketkeeper-batter Sanju Samson in the Indian team. However, Chopra didn’t go with Samson and instead named Ruturaj Gaikwad, Ishan Kishan, and Rohit Sharma to form the top-order.

Chopra reckoned that Kishan should get more chances, and Ruturaj also deserves further opportunities. The cricketer-turned-commentator urged skipper Rohit to bat at number three position.

“Ruturaj Gaikwad should open with Ishan Kishan. Justifiably, it begs the question, ‘Why not Sanju Samson?’ I believe that if you have started to play Ishan Kishan, let’s end that story whichever way it does. Maybe it has a beautiful ending. At least give him a substantial number of chances for him to capitalize. If he fails, it’s fine. If you replace him after 3 games, it is going to be a struggle,” said Chopra on his YouTube channel.

“I want to open with Ruturaj because Rohit can bat at 3. Let Rohit play at three. Give three chances to Ruturaj as well. It will also ensure a left hand-right hand opening combination, and Ruturaj will get the chances he deserves,” he added.

After Rohit, Chopra named Shreyas Iyer, Deepak Hooda and Venkatesh Iyer at number four, five and six, respectively. The Agra-born further argued that Samson is a top-order batter and, therefore, he can’t place him down the order.

“Rohit at 3, Shreyas Iyer at four and Deepak Hooda at 5. Why would you play Samson at 5 when he is a top-order batter? If you can’t give him chances at the top, there is no point in wasting his opportunities. Instead of doing that, give chances to those who can actually play in the position. I’ll have Venkatesh Iyer at six,” Chopra explained.