"It seemed earlier that he is only a red-ball bowler" - Aakash Chopra on India's bowling heading into 2nd ODI

Aakash Chopra feels India's bowlers did a decent job in the first ODI against Bangladesh, with Mohammed Siraj showing marked improvement as a limited-overs bowler.

Siraj registered figures of 3/32 in his 10 overs in Mirpur on Sunday, December 4. However, his spell could not help the Men in Blue defend a below-par 187-run target, with the hosts' last-wicket pair taking them across the finish line with a 51-run partnership.

While previewing the second ODI in a video shared on his YouTube channel, Chopra heaped praise on Siraj for his spell in the first game, elaborating:

"There is a special mention for Siraj, a lot of praise, because Siraj's career graph is going upwards. He is consistently bowling well. It seemed earlier that he is only a red-ball bowler but he is now consistently doing well with the white ball as well."

The former Indian opener acknowledged that the Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) seamer still has a long way to go in T20 cricket but added that he has grown in stature as a 50-over bowler, explaining:

"I feel in T20 he is still slightly hit and miss but in ODI cricket, he bowls well at a particular spot, good sideways movement and troubles the batters with slight pace."

Chopra feels Deepak Chahar and Shardul Thakur also did a decent job in the first ODI. He observed:

"You might see both Deepak Chahar and Shardul Thakur playing. Both give you options as all-rounders, both have swing. Deepak Chahar bowled extremely well with the new ball and Shardul came later and bowled very well. So bowlers did a fairly decent job."

Chahar bowled an excellent first spell in the series opener but was taken to the cleaners when he returned with the old ball. Thakur was extremely economical in the nine overs he bowled and also picked up Mahmudullah's wicket.

---

"I am not too worried" - Aakash Chopra on India's bowling

Kuldeep Sen was the only Indian bowler to concede more than five runs per over. [P/C: BCCI]

Chopra is not too concerned about India's bowling heading into the must-win game, reasoning:

"If you leave the last little while, the 51-run partnership should not have happened of course, but they did pick up nine wickets before that. They bowled well and if Rahul had held on to the catch, it would have been over, Mehidy Hasan Miraz was only on 15 at that stage. So I am not too worried from the bowlers' viewpoint."

Chopra concluded by opining that India should play only five bowlers, with Axar Patel replacing Shahbaz Ahmed as the left-arm spinner. He stated:

"I don't see Shahbaz playing because I want to pack my batting a little more. So that is why I am saying play Axar and Washington Sundar - five proper bowlers, where all of them get to get to bowl 10 overs apiece."

Kuldeep Sen was the sixth bowler fielded by India in the first ODI. Although the Madhya Pradesh pacer picked up two wickets, he was quite expensive and might have to make way if Rohit Sharma and Co. opt to field an extra batter.