"If 26 is your highest score in 6 matches, that's not very good" - Aakash Chopra on Rohit Sharma ahead of MI's IPL 2025 clash vs CSK

Former India player Aakash Chopra has picked Rohit Sharma's underwhelming performances with the bat among the Mumbai Indians' (MI) concerns heading into their IPL 2025 clash against the Chennai Super Kings (CSK). He pointed out that the former MI skipper has a top score of 26 in six innings in the ongoing edition of the Indian Premier League.

MI will host CSK in Match 38 of IPL 2025 in Mumbai in the evening game on Sunday, April 20. Rohit has aggregated 82 runs at a paltry average of 13.67 in six innings this season.

In a video shared on his YouTube channel 'Aakash Chopra', the former India opener opined that the opening combination of Rohit Sharma and Ryan Rickelton needs to fire for the Mumbai Indians to harbor hopes of qualifying for the IPL 2025 playoffs.

"One captain (MS Dhoni), who has won five trophies, is the captain now also. The other (Rohit Sharma), who has won five trophies, is not the captain and is coming as an impact player, and hasn't scored runs thus far. Runs from him are still awaited, that he would come back to his vintage form," Chopra said (7:35).

"He raised a few hopes by hitting two or three sixes in the last match. However, if 26 is your highest score in six matches, that's not very good. The opening combination has to fire. You cannot qualify if your opening is not working at all. To be fair, it hasn't worked thus far," he added.

While observing that Will Jacks has also not been consistent at No. 3, the cricketer-turned-commentator noted that MI need to resolve their top-order issues.

"Of course, Rickelton has scored runs in patches. Rohit hasn't scored that many runs. Will Jacks has come at No. 3 at times and at No. 7 on other occasions. He scored a few runs in the last match. The top three are not shining as bright. That's a huge problem for Mumbai that they need to sort out," Chopra observed.

Ryan Rickelton has aggregated 180 runs at an average of 30.00 in seven innings in IPL 2025. Will Jacks has managed only 91 runs at an average of 18.20 in his six knocks this season.

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"The bowling has not been that good" - Aakash Chopra on MI's other concern ahead of IPL 2025 clash vs CSK

Hardik Pandya (11) is the only MI bowler to take more than six wickets in IPL 2025. [P/C: Getty]

In the same video, Aakash Chopra chose the Mumbai Indians' bowling as their other concern ahead of their IPL 2025 clash against the Chennai Super Kings.

"The second thing is bowling. Firstly, how they are bowling, and secondly, it's allocation. The bowling has not been that good. Trent Boult is not bowling that well, and that's why he isn't bowling too many overs in the powerplay. Not a good story," he said (9:25).

While opining that Jasprit Bumrah shouldn't be required to bowl two overs in the powerplay, the analyst added that Hardik Pandya mustn't be bowling the final over.

"Deepak Chahar is still further away from where he should be. If you have to make Bumrah bowl two overs in the powerplay, that means you are in a bit of trouble. Hardik Pandya shouldn't ideally bowl the 20th over because I think he has been the most expensive bowler in the 20th over in the last one-and-a-half years," Chopra observed.

Jasprit Bumrah has picked up two wickets at an economy rate of 7.83 in three innings in IPL 2025. While Trent Boult has accounted for six dismissals at an economy rate of 9.12 in seven innings, Deepak Chahar's five scalps in seven innings have cost him an average of 10.47 runs per over.