Former Indian cricketer Aakash Chopra has expressed concern over Yashasvi Jaiswal's struggles against left-arm pace bowlers ahead of the fourth Test against Australia. Aakash Chopra said Yashasvi Jaiswal also faced similar challenges against the left-arm pacer during the Indian Premier League (IPL).
Yashasvi Jaiswal scored 193 runs in six innings at an average of 38.60 in BGT. The southpaw scored 161 runs in the second innings of the first Test. However, he was unable to surpass the 25-point mark in the remaining innings. Jaiswal struggled against Mitchell Starc, getting dismissed in the first innings in all three Tests.
Yashasvi Jaiswal bats against left arm pace – Aakash Chopra
In a video shared on his YouTube channel, Aakash Chopra said that Yashasvi Jaiswal's struggles against left-arm pace are not recent and were evident during the IPL as well. Chopra stated that he is not limited to Test cricket or Mitchell Starc.
“The truth is that Yashasvi Jaiswal is having trouble against left-arm pace, and that problem has not started now. It happens regularly. This happened in the IPL as well, which means it's not a format-specific issue. it's not a problem Mitchell Starc,” said Chopra.
His numbers against left arm pace are not that good – Aakash Chopra
The cricketer-turned-commentator pointed out that Jaiswal's struggles against left-arm pace have been compounded by Mitchell Starc's return to form. Chopra noted that Jaiswal's weakness is fully exploited by Starc.
“His numbers against left-arm pace are not that good and that is being exploited because, for some strange reason, Mitchell Starc is back to his best. same rhythm,” he observed.
Aakash Chopra talks about Shubman Gill's struggles in BGT 2024-25
In the same video, Aakash Chopra also spoke about Shubman Gill's performance. Chopra pointed out that Gill has struggled to convert his starts into big scores despite looking good at the crease. He also said that Gill needs to be patient, especially as other batsmen have also struggled for runs.
“Shubman Gill – it's been 16 or 17 innings where he hasn't scored more than 40 runs outside Asia in the last three years. The last time he did that was in Brisbane when India won the series. It's been a while .The expectations are the same for you. Look good, but look good is not good enough in this batting order right now,” he said.
“If Yashasvi struggles against left-arm pace, you struggle, (Virat) Kohli struggles if he comes early, runs haven't come from Rohit Sharma's bat and (Rishabh) Pant is yet to score runs, then Shubman Gill – will you also have to give yourself some time,” observed Chopra.
Shubman Gill missed the first Test in Perth with a finger injury. The 25-year-old batsman managed just 60 runs in three innings in the ongoing Test series. With the series level at 1-1, Gill is expected to play in the next Boxing Day Test in Melbourne, starting on Thursday, December 26.
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