Former Indian cricketer Aakash Chopra reckons that the India cricket team should be happy Fakhar Zaman has been ruled out of Champions Trophy. The opener, who has a prolific record in ODIs, single-handedly steered Pakistan to a mammoth total in the final of CT 2017, in which they beat India by 180 runs. Zaman picked up a side strain in Pakistan’s opening game against New Zealand, and was subsequently ruled out of the remainder of the tournament.
Fakhar’s absence “changes things significantly”
In a video on his YouTube channel, Chopra pointed out that India could not manage to get Zaman out in the finals of 2017 Champions Trophy. He remarked that the opener had won the game for Pakistan single-handedly. He wondered if the oepenr being ruled out should be celebrated by the Indian camp, given the dangerous player that he is.
“Who is Fakhar Zaman? We still remember the 2017 Champions Trophy final. We couldn’t get him out. We got him out once and it was a no-ball and he single-handedly won the game for Pakistan after that. Fakhar Zaman is that kind of a player. He doesn’t remain very consistent but he is an aggressive batter. He is also a left-hander,” Chopra said.
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Further, Chopra said that Fakhar’s absence could change things significantly for both Pakistan and India. He wondered if the hosts would want to give Imam-ul-Haq a chance to open in IND vs PAK or if they will go with an underconfident Saud Shakeel.
“However, now that he (Fakhar) is not there, it changes things significantly. Suddenly you feel what will happen, especially since your tournament started with a big loss, and you know the India match has become do or die. If you slip here, that’s it,” he said.
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