IPL 2021: "Rahane for Smith" - Aakash Chopra suggests changes DC should make against MI

Aakash Chopra has suggested four changes the Delhi Capitals (DC) can make for their IPL 2021 encounter against the Mumbai Indians (MI).

The Delhi Capitals have been hit hard by the unavailability of Shreyas Iyer for the entire duration of the tournament. Their problems were compounded when Axar Patel was ruled out of at least the first few matches due to a positive COVID test.

In a video shared on his YouTube channel, Aakash Chopra pointed out that the Delhi Capitals lack the requisite balance and have not utilized their resources effectively.

"I am not liking the balance of the Delhi Capitals. Steve Smith is not looking good to me at No.3. You played Rahane one match and then you have played Smith one match, Rahane played one match earlier but did not get to bat. You don't get Stoinis to bowl, you are playing Lalit Yadav but it's not right," said Chopra.

While talking about the Delhi Capitals' likely team changes, the renowned commentator observed the franchise will have to bolster their spin-bowling department for the encounter to be played at Chepauk.

"My personal feeling is that you will like to play Nortje here as he is available. You are missing Axar, here you will have to play Amit Mishra because the conditions are very different," added Aakash Chopra.

Apart from calling for the inclusion of Amit Mishra and Anrich Nortje, Aakash Chopra stated the Rishabh Pant-led side can think of bringing Ajinkya Rahane and Shimron Hetmyer back to their playing XI.

"So I want Mishra for Meriwala, I want you to play Nortje for Woakes. You can also play Rahane for Steve Smith and get Hetmyer in between. But it will not happen as he played the last match and will not be dropped," observed Chopra.

It will be interesting to see if the Delhi Capitals opt to drop Steve Smith after just one failure. They might want to persist with him in Chennai, especially considering his prowess against spin.

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Aakash Chopra on the one change the Mumbai Indians should make

Aakash Chopra feels the Mumbai Indians should play Jayant Yadav or Piyush Chawla instead of a pacer.

"In Mumbai, I want to see just the one change. You are playing a fast bowler but maybe you can play an extra spinner. The opposition team has quite a few left-handers, first Shikhar Dhawan and then Rishabh Pant. So why not maybe think of either Jayant Yadav or Piyush Chawla," said Chopra.

The Mumbai Indians might bring in Yadav at the expense of Adam Milne for Tuesday's encounter. The off-spinner gave a good account of himself against the same opposition in the IPL 2020 final and will also add variety to their attack.