Former India opening-batter Aakash Chopra has given his opinion on whether Team India should’ve declared their second innings earlier on Day 4 of the ongoing first Test at the Green Park Stadium in Kanpur. India, riding on half-centuries from Shreyas Iyer (65)and Wriddhiman Saha (61*), declared their second innings at 234/7, giving the New Zealand openers just four overs to bat before stumps were called on Sunday. There has been a lot of discussion surrounding the timing of the declaration.

Commenting on the same, Chopra said the Indian team should’ve declared their innings a bit earlier.

At stumps, New Zealand were 4 for one with Ravichandran Ashwin striking early to dismiss opener Will Young, who couldn’t replicate his heroics from the first innings. Young waited too long to review the decision and eventually the DRS timer ran out and his late request for a review was denied.

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“Usually, these decisions are judged depending upon the results. If you look at the (2021) Lord’s Test, India had given just 60 overs to England on the final day. However, they managed to bowl them out inside 55 overs (51.5) on a slow track. So, we’ll have to wait and see if the late declaration was justified or not,” Chopra said on Star Sports after stumps on Day four.

The former India batter also said that India could’ve taken more wickets on Day four, if they had given a few more overs to themselves to bowl at the New Zealand batters. He, however, said that this group of players know how to win.