Aakash Chopra suggests Vaibhav Sooryavanshi return to domestic cricket
Former cricketer Aakash Chopra questioned the decision to drop 15-year-old batter Vaibhav Sooryavanshi for the fourth T20I against New Zealand.
Vaibhav Sooryavanshi was moved to the bench for the fourth T20I against New Zealand as Ishan Kishan returned to the playing XI. Sooryavanshi had previously replaced Kishan for the second and third games of the series.
In the third T20I, Sooryavanshi scored 45 runs from 19 balls as India chased 199 in 13.2 overs. He and Abhishek Sharma added 133 runs for the first wicket in 7.1 overs.
Aakash Chopra expressed dissatisfaction with the team management on his YouTube channel regarding Sooryavanshi's exclusion. Chopra suggested that if the player is only selected when others are injured or unavailable, he should be sent home to play first-class cricket.
Chopra stated that while the player can learn in the Indian dressing room, he should be getting bat on ball if the pattern continues for an extended period.
Sooryavanshi plays for Bihar in domestic cricket and has played 11 first-class matches since his 2024 debut. He has scored 399 runs in 17 innings at an average of 23.47 and has represented East Zone in the Duleep Trophy.
The fifth T20I is scheduled for Sunday, November 1. India's T20I captain Shreyas Iyer will lead the team in the final two ODIs of the series.