"There is no pitch where you can say that 1 fast bowler is enough" - Aakash Chopra questions India's playing XI in IND vs ENG 2025 4th T20I

Despite the win, former India player Aakash Chopra has questioned the Men in Blue's team selection in the fourth T20I against England in Pune on Friday, January 31. He opined that Suryakumar Yadav and company should have included a second specialist seamer in their starting XI.

India set England a 182-run target after Jos Buttler asked them to bat first. The hosts then bowled the visitors out for 166 to register a 15-run win and seal the series 3-1 ahead of the final game in Mumbai on Sunday, February 2.

In a video shared on his YouTube channel 'Aakash Chopra,' the former India opener wasn't convinced about Mohammed Shami's exclusion from the team, highlighting that two frontline seamers were needed on virtually every pitch in white-ball cricket.

"From the team I had picked yesterday, there was only one change. I am still screaming, it's said that we should never blow our own trumpet, but you should have played two fast bowlers. I had kept Mohammed Shami in my team. They kept Mohammed Shami out," he said (7:15).

"Of course, you want to attack with spin, but I am clearly saying repeatedly that in white-ball cricket, there is no ground across the world where you can't play two fast bowlers. Game plans aside, there is no pitch where you can say that one fast bowler is enough, and will get Hardik Pandya, Shivam Dube or Nitish Dube to bowl as the second seamer," Chopra added.

The analyst pointed out that the Pune pitch wasn't a square turner and that Harshit Rana's game-defining spell proved that the initial selection was wrong.

"There is no pitch like that unless you make a rank turner. However, the pitch wasn't like that. So the game plan is still slightly beyond my understanding. Harshit Rana came and corrected your wrong," Chopra observed.

Rana came in as a concussion substitute for Shivam Dube. He registered figures of 3/33 in four overs to help India win the game when England seemed to have the upper hand.

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"It means you need another fast bowler" - Aakash Chopra on Harshit Rana's use as a concussion substitute

Harshit Rana made his T20I debut as a concussion substitute. [P/C: Getty]

In the same video, Aakash Chopra noted that Harshit Rana being employed as a concussion substitute implied that India were a fast bowler short.

"You missed a fast bowler and that's why you brought Harshit Rana in. Harshit picked up three wickets and you got him to bowl four overs. It means you need another fast bowler but you are consistently not playing him. You didn't play (Mohammed) Shami this time and played Arshdeep (Singh)," he said.

However, Chopra wasn't against India making three changes for Friday's game, highlighting that they wanted to correct things after losing the previous match. He concurred with the team management's decision to leave out Washington Sundar and include Shivam Dube in the XI.