"If he is bowling, he walks into the team any which way" - Aakash Chopra on Hardik Pandya's place at No. 6 in India's World Cup squad

Aakash Chopra feels Hardik Pandya is a sure-shot pick as a No. 6 batter in India's ODI World Cup 2023 squad thanks to his all-round capabilities.

The quadrennial global event will be played in India from October 5 to November 19. The Men in Blue are currently in the West Indies for a three-match ODI series, with Pandya being one of the all-rounders in their 17-member squad.

In a video shared on his YouTube channel, Chopra delved into the potential middle-order options for India for the upcoming ODI World Cup. While naming Shreyas Iyer and KL Rahul as the best candidates for the No. 4 and No. 5 positions respectively, he chose Pandya at No. 6, stating:

"Then I will say Hardik at No. 6 because your story at four, five and six looks solid. There are no question marks over Hardik's availability. The only question over Hardik is how much bowling fit he is. If he is bowling, [he] walks into the team any which way."

However, the former Indian opener added that it could be an issue if the seam-bowling all-rounder is not fit enough to bowl, reasoning:

"However, if he is not bowling, there is a concern about who will be the sixth bowling option. You can play five bowlers after the No. 6, but you need a sixth bowling option."

Pandya has scored 1584 runs at a decent average of 33.00 in 55 ODI innings. He has picked up 72 wickets at a reasonable economy rate of 5.61 in the 69 innings he has bowled in.

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"Hardik Pandya is a very, very important cog in India's scheme of things" - Aakash Chopra

Hardik Pandya can be the third seamer if India want to play three spinners in their XI.

Aakash Chopra pointed out that Hardik Pandya brings a unique skillset to the table for India, explaining:

"The balance Hardik Pandya provides, unfortunately, no one will be able to do that because whether it is Rohit Sharma, Shubman Gill, Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer, Suryakumar Yadav or anyone else, no one bowls. So Hardik Pandya is a very, very important cog in India's scheme of things."

The cricketer-turned-commentator named Suryakumar Yadav and Sanju Samson as the best backups for Shreyas Iyer and KL Rahul respectively. He added that India do not have too many other middle-order options.

Regarding Ruturaj Gaikwad, he said:

"You don't have too many options in the middle order. If you see Ruturaj Gaikwad as a dark horse, he is an opener and at the most, you will play him at No. 3 and there is no place there in any case. He is anyway the captain for the Asian Games, which means he is not in your thoughts in any case."

Chopra concluded by highlighting that Yashasvi Jaiswal, who is also an opener, has just started his career and is not even part of the ODI team for the West Indies tour.

He added that Deepak Hooda is also unlikely to be in the selectors' and team management's thoughts because of his recent below-par performances. Hooda scored a paltry 84 runs in 12 innings for the Lucknow Super Giants in the 2023 edition of the Indian Premier League.