"He was a member of the T20 World Cup-winning team" - Aakash Chopra on all-rounder being ignored for IND vs ENG 2025 T20Is

Former player Aakash Chopra has questioned why Shivam Dube has not been picked in India's squad for the upcoming T20I series against England. He pointed out that the all-rounder was an integral member of the Men in Blue's 2024 T20 World Cup-winning team.

India will host England in a five-match T20I series, with the first game to be played in Kolkata on January 22. Hardik Pandya and Nitish Kumar Reddy are the two seam-bowling all-rounders picked in the hosts' 15-member squad for the series.

In a video shared on his YouTube channel 'Aakash Chopra', the former India opener wondered why Dube has been ignored for the T20Is against England.

"What happened to Shivam Dube? I wanted to talk about Ruturaj (Gaikwad) as well but he is not able to make his place. Rajat Patidar is also there. Obviously, there is a lot of batting. However, now I am going to focus a little bit on Shivam Dube. He was a member of the T20 World Cup-winning team," he said (10:25).

While acknowledging that Dube might have been found slightly wanting in the initial few games of the T20 World Cup, Chopra pointed out he gave a decent account of himself in the final.

"When you win, everyone should get the credit. He even played decently in the final. Before that, there were definitely some questions that he wasn't fielding or batting well. However, then he played well and became the T20 World Cup champion," Chopra observed.

Shivam Dube aggregated 133 runs at a strike rate of 114.65 in eight innings in the 2024 T20 World Cup. He smashed a crucial 16-ball 27 in India's seven-run win in the final against South Africa.

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"He suddenly disappeared from the horizon" - Aakash Chopra on Shivam Dube

Shivam Dube has scored 448 runs at a strike rate of 134.93 in 24 T20I innings. [P/C: Getty]

In the same video, Aakash Chopra noted that Shivam Dube has suddenly gone out of contention.

"After that, he remained injured a little, didn't get too many opportunities either, and is now out of the team. No one is talking about him as well. Riyan Parag is not being talked about because he is injured but no one is asking where Dube went. He suddenly disappeared from the horizon," he said (11:35).

The cricketer-turned-commentator added that the incumbent player should return to the side once he has recovered from his injury as per the earlier protocol.

"If he was good enough to be a part of the World Cup squad, I am sure he would be worthy of playing for another one or two years. He has remained out because of injury, but there was a theory earlier that whoever goes out due to injury, will come back in first, and whoever replaced him would have to sit out no matter what he might have done," Chopra elaborated.

Aakash Chopra questioned whether the rise of Nitish Kumar Reddy has ended Shivam Dube's hopes. He added that it would have been fine if the selectors had properly communicated that they see more potential in the Andhra all-rounder.