Aakash Chopra has said that Shikhar Dhawan should have stayed the captain of the Indian team against Zimbabwe despite KL Rahul’s return.
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Zimbabwe and India will be up against each other in the 3-match ODI series starting on 18 August 2022. All the matches will be played at the Harare Sports Club in Harare.
Ahead of the series, Shikhar Dhawan was named the captain of the side as the majority of the main players have been rested for the series. However, KL Rahul was drafted into the side at the last moment, and he was also announced as the captain of the side with Shikhar Dhawan doing the vice-captain role.
Shikhar recently led India in the last ODI series against West Indies, where India performed well. The decision of Rahul to replace Shikhar as the captain at the last moment has been criticized by a few.
Aakash Chopra wanted Shikhar Dhawan as captain for Zimbabwe ODIs
Former Indian batter Aakash Chopra opposes the decision of KL Rahul to replace Shikhar Dhawan as the captain of the Indian side in Zimbabwe ODIs. Chopra said that he would have retained Shikhar as the captain for the Zimbabwe ODIs. He agreed that Rahul is the vice-captain for the Asia Cup, but there are already many captains in the team.
“If it was in my hands, I would have avoided that. He (Rahul) was originally not named in the squad for the Zimbabwe series,” Aakash Chopra said on his YouTube channel.
“I understand he is the vice-captain for the Asia Cup but there is another truth, that currently there are 8-10 captains in the team. Rishabh Pant is captain, Hardik Pandya is captain, and I do not think Suryakumar is far away from captaincy.”
KL Rahul declared fit to lead India in Zimbabwe. Replaces Shikhar as the Captain
— Vikrant Gupta (@vikrantgupta73) August 11, 2022
Chopra believes that Shikhar is the senior batter and it should not have been an issue if Rahul would have played under him in the series. He again insists that BCCI should have stayed with the captain they announced initially.
“Shikhar Dhawan is a senior guy, how does it matter if he is the captain? KL Rahul can play purely as a batter, it does not matter if he is the captain or not,” Chopra added.
