"I would say don't think about him" - Aakash Chopra on spinner's potential inclusion in KKR XI for IPL 2025 clash vs RCB

Former India player Aakash Chopra has opined that the Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) shouldn't consider including Anukul Roy in their playing combination for their IPL 2025 clash against the Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB). He noted that the defending champions should instead add an overseas seamer to their bowling attack.

KKR will lock horns with RCB in Match 58 of IPL 2025 in Bengaluru on Saturday, May 17. With 11 points from 12 games, the visitors are placed sixth on the points table and need to win both their remaining league games to harbor any hopes of qualifying for the playoffs.

In a video shared on his YouTube channel 'Aakash Chopra', the former India opener urged KKR to play either Spencer Johnson or Anrich Nortje in Moeen Ali's absence and not think about playing Anukul Roy.

"It's confirmed that Moeen Ali and Rovman Powell are not there, but I have no idea whether Spencer Johnson and Anrich Nortje have joined the squad. If either of them has joined, please play one of the two because your fast bowling is becoming weak. You don't want to bowl Andre Russell, and you won't want your entire fast-bowling department to depend on Harshit Rana and Vaibhav Arora," Chopra said (13:20).

"You will need one more fast bowler. You can think about Anukul Roy because left-arm spin works against these opposition batters, but I would say don't think about him. Get another fast bowler because there might be slight help for the fast bowlers on the Chinnaswamy pitch that has been under covers for a long time, and the bounce is also slightly spongy these days," he added.

Anukul Roy registered figures of 1/27 in four overs in the only game he has played in IPL 2025. While Spencer Johnson has picked up a solitary wicket at an economy rate of 11.73 in four games this season, Anrich Nortje delivered a spell of 1/23 in three overs in the only match he has played.

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"Determine Russell and Rinku's entry point slightly early" - Aakash Chopra on KKR's batting ahead of IPL 2025 clash vs RCB

Andre Russell has batted up the order in KKR's last couple of games in IPL 2025. [P/C: Getty]

Reflecting on KKR's batting, Aakash Chopra noted that they shouldn't have Ajinkya Rahane and Angkrish Raghuvanshi together in the middle and that Andre Russell and Rinku Singh should be allowed to play more overs.

"In batting, figure out a way for Rahane and Raghuvanshi not to bat together. They will have to sort out the batting order and determine Russell and Rinku's entry point slightly early so that they make an impact on the match," he said (14:25) in the same video.

The cricketer-turned-commentator added that the three-time champions might have to choose between Ramandeep Singh and Manish Pandey, casting his vote for the former.

"You might have to play Ramandeep here since Moeen is no longer there. You will play either Manish Pandey or Ramandeep. I would rather go with Ramandeep Singh, but Manish Pandey is again a Bengaluru boy, and he knows this ground well," Chopra observed.

Ramandeep Singh and Manish Pandey were part of KKR's playing combination in their two-wicket loss in their previous game against the Chennai Super Kings (CSK) in Kolkata on May 7. One of them might have to make way if Venkatesh Iyer is fit and available for Saturday's game.