"Captain Dhoni slowly-slowly got him to bowl at the death as well" - Aakash Chopra feels Mukesh Choudhary will play for Team India

Aakash Chopra has lauded Mukesh Choudhary for dishing out excellent performances in IPL 2022 and pointed out MS Dhoni's role in developing him as an all-round bowler.

Choudhary excelled as a new-ball bowler for the Chennai Super Kings (CSK) in IPL 2022. He was even used at the death as the tournament progressed and finished with 16 wickets, the joint-most by a CSK bowler along with Dwayne Bravo.

In a video shared on his YouTube channel, Chopra picked a few uncapped pacers who he feels will don the India cap soon. The former Indian batter said the following about Choudhary:

"If anyone bowls the best with the new ball, I feel it is Mukesh Choudhary. We saw him bowling at the death also where he used the natural angle of taking it across, which all left-armers do. Captain Dhoni slowly-slowly got him to bowl at the death as well."

The cricketer-turned-commentator also highlighted Dhoni's role in molding Choudhary into an effective death bowler. Chopra explained:

"This is captain Dhoni's plan - he first gets you to bowl more with the new ball and then prepares you slowly, then finishes you in the 14th or 15th over and then gives you the 19th or 20th over as well. He stood out in every challenge."

Deepak Chahar has also spoken in the past about Dhoni's role in grooming him as a bowler who can bowl at the death. The talismanic skipper tends to ensure that the swing bowler gains the required confidence by bowling with the new ball before he is given the responsibility to bowl the end overs.

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"He didn't let feel the absence of Deepak Chahar" - Aakash Chopra on Mukesh Choudhary's exploits with the new ball for CSK

Mukesh Choudhary was especially effective with the new ball [P/C: iplt20.com]

Aakash Chopra added that Choudhary's exploits for CSK with the new ball made up for Chahar's injury-enforced absence to a certain extent. He elaborated:

"He used to go around as a net bowler earlier but this time, he didn't let feel the absence of Deepak Chahar. He has taken wickets with the new ball in the powerplay and he has the amazing ability to bring the new ball in. He bowls at the one spot consistently."

The 44-year-old concluded by highlighting the skills Choudhary used to get the better of the likes of Ishan Kishan and Rohit Sharma. Chopra observed:

"When you bowl with a high arm and from close to the stumps, the ball moves just before pitching. The later the ball swings, the more difficult it is for you to bat and he showed that by doing it. He consistently used that angle well. That is how he got the likes of Ishan Kishan and Rohit Sharma out."

Choudhary dismissed both Ishan Kishan and Rohit Sharma for ducks in CSK's first clash against the Mumbai Indians (MI). He again dismissed Kishan cheaply in the reverse fixture between the two sides.

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