Aakash Chopra On Yuzi Chahal India Team Exclusion: Former Indian cricketer Aakash Chopra believes that the time is up for Yuzvendra Chahal in the Indian Cricket Team and that the spinner will likely never play for the national team again.
Chahal has been one of the most prolific wrist spinners of the last 10 years. For India, on several occasions, he has been a match-winner in ODIs and T20Is. In 72 one-day matches for the Man in Blue, he took 121 wickets at an average of 27.13. Meanwhile, in T20Is, he has taken 96 wickets in 80 games at an average of 25.
The Haryana-based cricketer is also the most successful bowler in the history of the Indian Premier League, where, in 160 matches across 12 seasons, he has taken 205 wickets at an average of 22.44, the most for any bowler in league history by far. He has taken over 20 wickets in five seasons and won the Purple Cap in 2022 with the Rajasthan Royals.
Check Out: Aakash Chopra On Yuzi Chahal India Team Exclusion
However, Yuzu’s time with the Indian team seems to now be in the past, despite his impressive record in limited-overs cricket. He has not played a match for the national team since August 2023 and has now been replaced by Kuldeep Yadav as India’s premier wrist-spinner.
Yuzvendra Chahal was once again thrust into the limelight when the BCCI chose the 15-man Indian team for the ICC Champions Trophy 2025 in Pakistan and the UAE. Four spinners were picked for the squad, with Kuldeep being the only wrist spinner.
While Chahal did not play any games in the competition, he was part of the squad for the 2024 T20 World Cup. The upcoming Champions Trophy squad seems to be the point from which he would no longer be considered for the Indian Cricket Team.
Aakash Chopra On Yuzi Chahal India Team Exclusion
Former Indian cricketer Aakash Chopra chimed in on the situation as well. In a recent video on his YouTube channel regarding India’s CT 2025 squad, he had this to say about the exclusion of veterans like Yuzvendra Chahal and Bhuvneshwar Kumar from the squad.
“An interesting case is Yuzi Chahal’s. He last played in January 2023. So it’s been two years for him. It’s interesting because Bhuvi would have been expensive and wouldn’t have gotten wickets in the last 10 matches before he was dropped, but Yuzi Chahal’s numbers are also very good. He has picked up a lot of wickets and was consistently doing well,” said Chopra.
Aakash then reflected upon how Chahal seems to be completely out of the equation for the national team, saying,
“However, he has been totally finished. His file has been closed. I have no idea why they did that. Having said that, because it’s been two years since it’s been closed, there is no place for Yuzi also here because as soon as you suddenly pick him out of the blue, it will be seen as a regressive step.”
Despite being out of the Indian Cricket Team, Yuzvendra Chahal was picked by the Punjab Kings in the IPL 2025 mega-auction for a massive price of Rs. 18 crores.
Check Out: Aakash Chopra On Yuzi Chahal India Team Exclusion
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