“Were we just wasting time?” - Aakash Chopra questions Gautam Gambhir over India’s No.3 Test spot

Former Indian opening batter Aakash Chopra has questioned the including the head coach Gautam Gambhir, for constantly changing the batters for the No.3 spot in the Indian Test team of late.

Speaking exclusively on JioHotstar, the former cricketer emphasized that the No.3 spot in the Indian Test team seems to be constantly changing with every coming series. Interestingly, Men In Blue tried out Karun Nair, Sai Sudharsan, and Washington Sundar at this spot so far.

"Washington Sundar has presented himself as a phenomenal option who can bat at the top of the order, and of course, is a more than handy bowler. The bigger question that Gautam and the team management need to answer is ‘Are we going to keep changing goalposts after every series?’" Aakash Chopra said to the press during a JioStar media day.

"You're well within your rights to go with Washington, but if Washi is your long term choice, then were we just wasting time with Sai Sudharsan or even Karun Nair to bat at 3?" questioned Chopra.

Additionally, Chopra reckoned that the top 5 players in any world-class line-up should be pure batters, questioning the head coach on what exact message he would give to players like Sudharsan, who haven’t committed any mistakes at that spot. 

"You would first want to prioritise the batting capabilities, not only the skill but also the temperament and the patience and the ability to bat time. That is why you look for the purest specialists who have only one job to do. Your top 4 or 5 are there just to bat and nothing else,” he added.

"If you choose Washington Sundar as a batter, fair enough, but it just feels like the last six or seven months were futile and you didn't really gain anything from it. What message do you give to Sai Sudharsan that we gave you a chance, you scored the runs, but we had a change of heart. Transition gives you the chance to experiment, but what makes it easier is clarity and consistency,” he concluded.

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