‘Criminal to think of benching Naman Dhir’ – Aakash Chopra’s massive statement ahead of 4th NZ vs IND T20I

Cricket analyst Aakash Chopra has strongly advocated for retaining Naman Dhir in India's T20I lineup while questioning the continued omission of Shivam Dube. Speaking ahead of the fourth T20I against New Zealand in Auckland, Chopra stated that benching Dhir given his current batting form would be a major mistake. Chopra argued that if Dube is brought back into the team, he should replace Nitish Kumar Reddy instead of Dhir.

India has already secured the series following three consecutive wins under captain Shreyas Iyer. Dhir contributed key innings of 42 not out off 15 balls and 31 off 17 balls in the opening fixtures. Meanwhile, Chopra highlighted Dube's international pedigree as a two-time T20 World Cup winner who recently featured in ODI matches in England, expressing surprise at his absence from the playing XI.