'Are you going to keep him in the Playing XI?' - Aakash Chopra on Abhimanyu Easwaran's appointment as India A captain

Published - 17 May 2025, 22:00 IST | Updated - 17 May 2025, 23:49 IST

Aakash Chopra, the former cricketer, had some major questions for BCCI as they announced the 18-member squad for the upcoming India A tour of England. This time, the selectors have made Abhimanyu Easwaran the captain for the India A squad, over Ruturaj Gaikwad, as was the case during the practice games preceding the Border-Gavaskar Trophy 2024-25.

On this note, the former India batter questioned the intentions of the selection committee and whether they will keep him in the playing XI against England. India will miss the services of Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli in Test cricket, as the players have retired from the format. Now, the Board will have to look for players who can replace them in the Test team.

The five-match Test series against England is the start of the WTC cycle, and India wouldn't want to lose the series. If Easwaran plays well in the warm-up match, he might get to play in the Test series alongside Yashasvi Jaiswal as an opener.

"When such a team was made last time, Ruturaj Gaikwad was the captain. Now, Ruturaj Gaikwad is not the captain. Why has that happened? I have got no idea. The big news is that Abhimanyu Easwaran has been made the captain. Is that an indication that you are going to keep him in the XI? I have no idea, but he has been made the captain," he said on his YouTube video.

Aakash Chopra spoke about Ishan Kishan's comeback in the Indian team after a year or so. However, he might not get a chance to play since Dhruv Jurel is the vice-captain of the India A squad. It will be interesting to see how Abhimanyu Easwaran handles the team and forms the playing XI.

"Who are the other absentees? KL Rahul isn't there. Maybe spending time with his family. Rishabh Pant isn't there. Ishan Kishan is making a comeback. You might not see him playing because Dhruv Jurel is the vice-captain. Maybe Rishabh Pant could have gone for the second match as well because you want to remain in batting form. IPL hasn't been very kind to him," added Chopra.