"It's not that we haven't lost Tests under Kohli's captaincy" - Aakash Chopra on why India's tail is being given importance now

Former India opener Aakash Chopra has opined that the need for the current Indian Test side's lower order to contribute with the bat shouldn't be compared with Virat Kohli's era. He pointed out that India had a more dependable batting lineup at that time, highlighting that they lost games even in that era.

England beat India by five wickets in the first Test in Leeds on Tuesday, June 24. The visitors suffered batting collapses in both innings, losing their last seven wickets for 41 runs in the first innings and their last six wickets for 31 runs in the second innings.

In a video shared on his YouTube channel 'Aakash Chopra,' the cricketer-turned-commentator was asked why India's tail is being given importance now, which wasn't the case under Kohli's captaincy.

"Firstly, any two eras are different, and let's not compare the two. It's not necessary that whatever happened at one time should happen at another time as well, especially when you are going through a transition. We might not have had that much depth in batting earlier, but there was a lot of pedigree and experience. You had a very, very dependable batting order," Chopra responded.

"So it was okay even if the tail didn't wag. However, it's not that it has never wagged. The need of the hour now is that everyone needs to contribute. It's a two-sided problem. You also need to have the bowling that can blow away the opposing team's tail. I would say stop comparing. It's not that we haven't lost Tests under Kohli's captaincy. We lose under everyone's captaincy," he added.

With 40 wins, Virat Kohli is India's most successful Test skipper. However, Team India have also lost 17 Tests under Kohli's captaincy, although his win percentage of 58.82 is best among Indian skippers who have led in at least 10 Tests.

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"Mayank Yadav is not fully fit" - Aakash Chopra on whether India should give chances to new bowlers

Mayank Yadav has been laid low by multiple injuries over the last few years. [P/C: Getty]

In the same video, Aakash Chopra was asked whether India should give chances to new bowlers like Anshul Kamboj, Yash Dayal and Mayank Yadav.

"Since you have taken these names, I will talk about them. Mayank Yadav is not fully fit. So how will you be able to invest in him? Yash Dayal is still a work in progress. So he will also take time to come. I do agree that Anshul Kamboj is next in line," he replied.

The analyst named Khaleel Ahmed and Umran Malik as two of the seamers Team India could look to invest in, highlighting that they need to bolster their seam and spin-bowling departments.

"I want you to ask Khaleel to play days' cricket. Invest a little in Umran Malik because he has got pace. He has got something that most people do not have. Pace, either you have it or you don't. We need to invest in the next line of fast bowlers and spinners because, suddenly, there is going to be a huge void," Chopra observed.

Aakash Chopra opined that Jasprit Bumrah and Mohammad Shami will no longer be seen playing international cricket regularly. While acknowledging that Mohammed Siraj is there, he added that Prasidh Krishna is a work in progress, and Arshdeep Singh has primarily played T20Is only.