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Former India cricketers Piyush Chawla, Cheteshwar Pujara, and Nikhil Chopra picked Shubman Gill, Axar Patel, Hardik Pandya, Rohit Sharma, and Virat Kohli as X-factors for the conflict in opposition to Pakistan.
Shubman Gill scored 101 to steer India to a six-wicket win in opposition to Bangladesh in Champions Trophy 2025. (Picture: AP)
Former India cricketers Piyush Chawla, Cheteshwar Pujara and Nikhil Chopra picked Males in Blue’s X-Elements for Sunday (February 23)’s conflict in opposition to defending champions Pakistan in Dubai. Whereas Chawla went for the in-form Shubman Gill, Pujara picked India’s all-rounders and Chopra went for Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli.
Vice-captain Gill hit a superb, composed 101 (129) to steer India in a tough 232-run chase in opposition to Bangladesh. India chased the full in 46.3 overs, profitable their opening conflict by six wickets.
“The X-factor for India is I feel Shubman Gill,” Chawla stated in an unique interview with CNNNews18. “It’s completely due to his kind, the way in which he’s batting. Within the final 4 innings, he has acquired two centuries. Particularly the final hundred he acquired in opposition to Bangladesh — it was a troublesome wicket to bat on, a tough pitch, however the way in which he confirmed maturity and took the accountability… he batted until the final.”
Pujara went with the all-rounder duo of Axar Patel and Hardik Pandya, saying that they’d have a ‘essential position’ to play.
“I might go together with the all-rounders as a result of I do agree with Piyush that the way in which Shubman is batting, he’s the X-factor however since he has talked about him, I’d go together with Axar and Hardik as a result of each of them play an important position. Since Axar has been batting at quantity 5 — Ravindra is one other all-rounder we’ve got however he isn’t getting the chance to bat up the order — I’ll go together with Axar and Hardik.”
Chopra, in the meantime, went with the senior duo of skipper Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli. He feels Rohit has a ‘rating to settle’ in opposition to Shaheen Afridi whereas Kohli would love the strain of the competition.
“There’s an outdated rating to settle and simply to take another person’s identify, I’ll again the skipper and naturally King Kohli. First, Rohit has to settle the rating in opposition to Shaheen Afridi and Virat Kohli everyone knows, the most important stage, a strain sport, and he loves that,” he stated.