Aakash Chopra backs Jitesh Sharma as India’s potential wicketkeeper for 2026 T20 World Cup

Former Indian opener Aakash Chopra has backed Jitesh Sharma as India’s potential wicket-keeper for the 2026 T20 World Cup. Chopra said Sharma seems to be the number one wicket-keeper for the 2026 T20 World Cup.

The renowned commentator highlighted that the right-hander has an impressive strike rate while batting from number four to seven. Jitesh can hit the ground running in T20Is and has come up with consistent performances.

Jitesh scored 261 runs in 11 innings of IPL 2025 at an impressive strike rate of 176.35 and thus played an instrumental role in taking RCB to glory for the first time in the tournament.

Meanwhile, after Shubman Gill was recently named as T20I vice-captain, Sanju Samson’s place as an opener has come under the scanner. Thus, Jitesh might be India’s first-choice wicket-keeper in the upcoming Asia Cup.

Aakash Chopra said on his YouTube Channel, “We come to the man who is there (in the Asia Cup squad). I feel he will play in the XI. That is Jitesh Sharma. When he has played at Nos. 1 to 3, he has a strike rate of 135 and an average of 25. We shouldn’t think too much about that because he won’t get a chance there. However, his numbers at Nos. 4 to 7 have become a lot better.”

“He has a strike rate of 166 and an average of 28. He is the first batter whose strike rate is above 150. So when the pecking order is prepared, he will go right at the top. Jitesh Sharma’s numbers have looked the best amongst everyone else. Jitesh Sharma is shining bright. He seems to be at No. 1,” Chopra added.

On the other hand, Chopra noted that Dhruv Jurel, who is part of the stand-by list for the Asia Cup, has decent numbers while batting from number four to seven.

“Dhruv Jurel is a part of the Indian setup at the moment. He is among the standbys currently. He has played only two matches at Nos. 1 to 3, so there is no point in talking about a strike rate of 71 there. However, at Nos. 4 to 7, where he bats regularly, he has a strike rate of 144 and an average of 25, which is not bad,” he said.

“He is also a work in progress. I won’t say that he is a finished product, but I have a lot of time for Dhruv Jurel because he is a good cricketer. He has the might. He has the talent to bat at that number, and that’s the thought process behind the Indian team management keeping him, and that’s why he is part of the standbys. He was part of the team last time, but is now part of the standbys,” Chopra observed.

Jurel had scored 333 runs in 13 innings of IPL 2025 at an average of 37 and a strike rate of 156.33.