He should but will he?

Former India player Aakash Chopra has reckoned that one of the questions in front of the Punjab Kings (PBKS) ahead of their IPL 2025 clash against the Gujarat Titans (GT) would be whether Shreyas Iyer will adopt an anchor’s role. While opining that the new PBKS skipper should don that hat, Chopra wasn’t convinced whether he would do so.

PBKS will lock horns with GT in the two teams’ IPL 2025 opener in Ahmedabad on Tuesday, March 25. The Punjab-based franchise bought Shreyas for a whopping ₹26.75 crore at the mega auction last November and subsequently appointed him as their skipper.

In a video shared on his YouTube channel ‘Aakash Chopra,’ the former India opener expressed keenness to see the role Shreyas would perform for the Punjab Kings in IPL 2025.

“I am curious to see who would bat where and what would be the role assigned to them. Could it be possible for Shreyas Iyer to become the pivot? He should but will he? I am extremely eager to see that because other teams might try to score 250-275, but you can write your own story,” Chopra said (6:20).

The former Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) player reckoned that PBKS would have to figure out their ideal opening combination, expressing hope that the franchise would be more consistent in team selections under the new leadership.

“Who will open? Will they get Priyansh Arya to open with Prabhsimran Singh? Will they ask the two uncapped Indians to go and unleash, or else Prabhsimran at one end, with Josh Inglis coming with him, or can they get Marcus Stoinis to open? There are plenty of options available to them,” Chopra observed.

“So I am extremely curious to see who would open for the Punjab Kings because, although this team’s history is that they make changes very quickly, this team has changed. So throw the past baggage out. Try to understand the Punjab Kings with a new lens,” he added.

Aakash Chopra pointed out that the combination of Shreyas Iyer as captain and Ricky Ponting as coach has done well previously as they took the Delhi Capitals (DC) to the IPL 2020 final. He added that Shreyas is the only captain who has taken two different teams to an IPL final, as he also led KKR to the title last year.

“Who will they play?” – Aakash Chopra on the Punjab Kings’ choice of all-rounders ahead of IPL 2025 clash vs Gujarat Titans

In the same video, Aakash Chopra opined that the Punjab Kings might have to choose one among Marco Jansen, Aaron Hardie, and Azmatullah Omarzai as their fourth overseas player since Josh Inglis, Marcus Stoinis, and Glenn Maxwell are virtual certainties in their playing XI.

“Then I am looking at the all-rounders because they have Marco Jansen, Aaron Hardie and Azmatullah Omarzai. They are a team filled with all-rounders, but who will they play? They cannot play everyone. I think Inglis, Stoinis and Maxwell will definitely play. So who will be the fourth?” he said (6:55).

Aakash Chopra added that PBKS would also have to choose a second Indian pacer to partner Arshdeep Singh. To conclude, the cricketer-turned-analyst opined that the Gujarat Titans have the edge heading into Tuesday’s game as they have a slightly more balanced side.

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Edited by Parag Jain