Veteran commentator Aakash Chopra has questioned the Punjab Kings (PBKS) for holding Shashank Singh back in their batting order in their IPL 2024 defeat to the Mumbai Indians (MI) in Mullanpur on Thursday, April 18. While chasing a 193-run target, Shashank, who was sent to bat at No. 6, scored a 25-ball 41, and Ashutosh Sharma smashed 61 runs off just 28 at No. 8 but lost the match by nine runs.
In a video shared on his YouTube channel, Chopra said, “When your team is 14/4, it seems like the match can’t be won because you are too far behind, and your four main players’, whom you consider your main players, innings’ have ended. Shashank comes in such a situation and Jitesh (Sharma) was there with him.”
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“I would want to say one thing about Shashank. The way he is batting, how did you decide that he is your finisher only, that even though he is batting well, you won’t send him up the order? What is the point? Someone who is batting well and has the temperament is not a finisher only. He plays red-ball cricket and is an experienced player,” the former India opener again added.
However, Aakash Chopra also stated that the Punjab Kings’ problem has been their lack of faith in youngsters. He gave the example of Atharva Taide being dropped after playing just one game as well. Aakash Chopra also lauded Ashutosh Sharma for playing a blazing knock
after the Punjab Kings lost early wickets.
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“Punjab were in the game until Shashank was there. Ashutosh also came and started hitting. Then Bumrah was called to do something and he got Shashank out. Then it seemed like Mumbai would probably win the match but Ashutosh was there with Harpreet Brar. Ashutosh – remember the name,” Aakash Chopra concluded. “If we saw Suryakumar Yadav in the first innings, Ashutosh Sharma was almost his mirror image in the second innings. You all saw the type of shots he played. The thing I liked the most about him was his cricketing smarts. When Bumrah bowled a no-ball, he knew the next ball would be a yorker because it was a free hit.”
