Former India opener Aakash Chopra stated that he is clueless as to why Mayank Yadav played only two T20Is against New Zealand despite being impressive with the ball. To avoid speculation, Chopra urged the Indian management to come out in the open about what kind of roadmap they have in mind for the pacer.
Mayank played the first T20I against New Zealand in Christchurch and registered figures of 1-40 from four overs. The 24-year-old then featured in the fourth T20I in Auckland and registered impressive figures of 3-48.
During a discussion on Cricinfo, Chopra shared his views on Mayank only playing two out of the five T20Is and said:
“He may have picked up a niggle for all we know. We have no idea. So once we don’t know, we don’t want to speculate. But yes, it is a bit of a surprise. Hopefully, at some stage, somebody will ask the question and we’ll have an answer that this is the plan for Mayank Yadav. He’s coming back into this team.
“How many bowlers in this country bowl at 150 clicks? He’s capable of doing that. His comeback is looking quite good, to be fair. He was the pick of the bowlers when he played. Mayank Yadav is back for good is what you think. Because the only thing that was stopping him from playing for India regularly was his injury and his rehab,” Chopra added.
In a stop-start career, Mayank has played 12 T20Is and has claimed 17 wickets at an average of 23.82 and an economy rate of 8.80.
“It was a little inexperienced” – Chopra on India’s fast bowling attack in NZ vs IND 2026 T20Is
While India won the five-match T20I series 3-2, their bowlers were often put under pressure by New Zealand’s batters. Chopra opined that the team’s inexperience in fast bowling came to the fore and added that Axar Patel’s struggles made matters tougher for India. He said:
“When you look at the Indian fast bowling attack, it was a little inexperienced. You had Mayank, you had Prince. Both are quite young and quite raw in terms of their international experience. India did not play the spinners. Axar Patel is not really picking the wickets right now. So, if that is the territory that you’re operating, I don’t think you’re going to actually dismiss the opposition completely.”
Having won the T20I series, India will take on New Zealand in the first ODI in Auckland on November 4.
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Edited by Renin Wilben Albert
