'Bharat should firstly be judged on his keeping': Aakash Chopra

KS Bharat (Pic: File Pic)

Former India opening batsman Aakash Chopra has his say about KS Bharat that he should be provided with one more opportunity after failing in the first two test matches.

The India vs England 3^rd Test series will be played at the Saurashtra Cricket Association Stadium on Thursday. According to the media reports, Dhruv Jurel is set to replace Bharart ahead of the India vs England 3^rd Test series.

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Bharat has scored 221 runs at an average of 20.09 in seven Tests he has played so far in his career.

The cricketer-turned-commentator asserted that Bharat should be given at least one more match to prove himself.

"It's been heard that Dhruv Jurel will be handed his debut cap. I am thinking whether it's right or wrong. Only two Tests have happened. I want him (Bharat) to keep in all five, but if you still need batting that much, Bharat deserves to be given at least one more match," Chopra said on his YouTube channel.

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The 46-year-old further stated that Bharat should be judged on his wicket-keeping skills and not on his batting performance.

"I would say Srikar Bharat should firstly be judged on his keeping and I feel he is keeping decently. The pitches are difficult and that's why you weren't getting KL Rahul to keep. You said you wanted a specialist keeper. So he is doing his job fully as a specialist keeper," the former right-hand batter added.

The Board of Control for Cricket in India confirmed that wicketkeeper-batsman KL Rahul will not play the IND vs ENG 3rd Test due to a sore knee. Devdutt Padikkal will replace Rahul in the squad.

India's updated squad for last three Tests vs England: Rohit Sharma (C), Jasprit Bumrah (VC), Yashasvi Jaiswal, Shubman Gill, Devdutt Padikkal, Rajat Patidar, Sarfaraz Khan, Dhruv Jurel (WK), KS Bharat (WK), R Ashwin, Ravindra Jadeja, Axar Patel, Washington Sundar, Kuldeep Yadav, Mohd. Siraj, Mukesh Kumar, Akash Deep.

(With ANI Inputs)