Aakash Chopra Reveals His All-Time Indian Test XI

Aakash Chopra's All-Time Test XI for India

Former Indian cricketer Aakash Chopra has unveiled his all-time Test XI for the Indian cricket team on his YouTube channel. Notably, Rohit Sharma is absent from the opening position, while Virat Kohli is appointed as the captain of a squad comprising cricket legends. Chopra selected the iconic Sunil Gavaskar for his stability and the aggressive Virender Sehwag to complement him. He explained his reasoning, stating,

"You can't look beyond two openers whose names are Sunil Gavaskar and Virender Sehwag. There isn't much scope for discussion. A lot of calm on one side, and a lot of passion on the other. A lot of hitting from one end and solidity from the other."

For the third and fourth positions, Chopra opted for the renowned Rahul Dravid and the legendary Sachin Tendulkar. Although he considered Cheteshwar Pujara for the number three spot, he ultimately chose Dravid. Regarding Tendulkar, he remarked,

"Who should be kept at No. 3? Once again, there isn't much debate. You might think whether Cheteshwar Pujara can be there, but I can't look beyond Rahul Dravid, and neither can you," the former India batter observed.

He further elaborated,

"Rahul Dravid's name being at No. 3 is as simple as Sachin paaji's name being at No. 4. So Wall is at No. 3, and at No. 4, we have got God. There is no question or doubt about Paaji's name being at No. 4. There was a long phase in his career when he was carrying the entire team on his shoulders."

Aakash Chopra's All-Time Indian Test Bowlers

Chopra completed his top six by placing Virat Kohli at number five and naming him captain. He mentioned that he could have placed Kohli at four but preferred to keep Tendulkar in that position. After some deliberation between Saurav Ganguly and VVS Laxman, Kohli emerged victorious. For the sixth spot, Chopra chose the dynamic Rishabh Pant over MS Dhoni.

For the bowling lineup, he included the exceptional all-rounder Kapil Dev at number seven. His spin duo consists of Anil Kumble and Ravichandran Ashwin, while the pace attack features Jasprit Bumrah and Zaheer Khan.

Aakash Chopra's All-Time India Test XI - Sehwag, Gavaskar, Dravid, Sachin, Virat Kohli (C), Pant, Kapil Dev, Ashwin, Kumble, Bumrah, Zaheer.