Former India opener Aakash Chopra believes Vaibhav Sooryavanshi faces an uphill battle to break into India’s T20I playing XI, with the team’s established top-order options leaving little room for the 15-year-old to feature.Sooryavanshi is part India’s squad for the upcoming five-match T20I series against New Zealand, which begins on November 22. However, the teenager was not given a single opportunity during the recently concluded home series against the West Indies, which ended in a 2-2 draw.Chopra feels the youngster’s absence from the playing XI is primarily a result of the lack of available slots rather than a question of his ability. He suggested that rotating the top-order batters could be a way to give Sooryavanshi opportunities, although he acknowledged that the idea has not found much support.Speaking on his YouTube channel, the former India batter was asked whether Sooryavanshi should replace Tilak Varma in the XI, given the latter’s perceived inconsistency.“Vaibhav Sooryavanshi isn’t getting chances because a place isn’t getting created for him. In whose place should you play him? To be fair, he can play only in place of Sanju Samson, Abhishek Sharma, or Ishan Kishan,” Chopra responded.“When three people are doing well, you can’t get a chance suddenly. I know it is heartbreaking, but there is no other way. No one is agreeing with the method I am suggesting. You can do a rotation. Give chances to all four of them in rotation,” he added.
Chopra suggests Ranji Trophy stint if Sooryavanshi remains on bench
Chopra also argued that keeping Sooryavanshi in the squad without giving him any playing time throughout the series would serve little purpose. In such a situation, he believes the teenager should be released to play in the Ranji Trophy instead.The youngster has made an encouraging start to his T20I career, scoring 246 runs in eight matches at a strike rate of over 186, including two half-centuries. Despite his impressive numbers and reputation for aggressive batting, he has yet to get a consistent opportunity in the current international setup, with the more experienced Sanju Samson and Abhishek Sharma preferred at the top of the order.
‘Shooting arrows at Tilak Varma is not right’
Chopra also defended Tilak Varma, disagreeing with the suggestion that the Indian vice-captain has been underperforming and should make way for Sooryavanshi.“If you say Tilak Varma doesn’t perform at all, then what you are saying is slightly wrong. Tilak Varma struck two centuries when he played at No. 3. After that, he got injured and had a slight problem before the World Cup,” he said.The former India opener pointed to Tilak’s contributions in the middle and lower-middle order, arguing that his recent performances should not be overlooked simply because he has not always batted at his preferred position.“The World Cup didn’t start well, but after that, ever since he became a finisher, he has done a good job, whether you see the performances in the Asian Games or now. The fact is that he has been doing really well in the middle order and the lower-middle order. So I feel shooting arrows at Tilak Varma is not right,” Chopra observed.
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