# Aakash Chopra (आकाश चोपड़ा)
**Aakash Chopra** (आकाश चोपड़ा; born 1977 in Agra, Uttar Pradesh) is an Indian former cricketer, commentator, and author who played 10 Test matches for India as a defensive opening batsman between 2003 and 2004 and later became a prominent Hindi cricket commentator and YouTube analyst[1](https://www.cricbuzz.com/profiles/257/aakash-chopra) • [2](https://www.inditubedb.com/guides/aakash-chopra).
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Born | 1977, Agra, Uttar Pradesh; right-handed batsman[1](https://www.cricbuzz.com/profiles/257/aakash-chopra) |
| Test career | 10 matches, 19 innings, 437 runs at an average of 23, highest score 60, two fifties; no ODIs or T20Is[1](https://www.cricbuzz.com/profiles/257/aakash-chopra) |
| Test span | Debut vs New Zealand, 8 October 2003, Ahmedabad; last match vs Australia, 26 October 2004, Nagpur[1](https://www.cricbuzz.com/profiles/257/aakash-chopra) |
| First-class record | 10,542 runs in 154 matches at an average of 46.44, with a highest score of 301 not out[3](https://www.bcci.tv/news/article/aakash-chopra-moves-from-rajasthan-to-hp) |
| Ranji titles | Delhi 2007-08 (783 runs that season); Rajasthan 2010-11 and 2011-12[1](https://www.cricbuzz.com/profiles/257/aakash-chopra) • [3](https://www.bcci.tv/news/article/aakash-chopra-moves-from-rajasthan-to-hp) |
| IPL | 7 matches for Kolkata Knight Riders, 53 runs; signed for the inaugural 2008 season[1](https://www.cricbuzz.com/profiles/257/aakash-chopra) |
| Later career | Commentator and author; YouTube channel with about 5.13 million subscribers[2](https://www.inditubedb.com/guides/aakash-chopra) |
## International career
Chopra was a classical opener in the defensive mold: the batsman sent in to play out the new ball and blunt its shine so that the middle order could bat against an older ball[1](https://www.cricbuzz.com/profiles/257/aakash-chopra). A knee injury kept him out at the end of the 2002/03 season, but he impressed in a brief two-Test home series against New Zealand, making his Test debut at [Ahmedabad](https://www.edgepedia.org/ahmedabad) on 8 October 2003, and was picked for India's tour of Australia in 2003/04[1](https://www.cricbuzz.com/profiles/257/aakash-chopra). He was the 245th Indian to represent India in [Test cricket](https://www.edgepedia.org/test-cricket)[4](https://www.espn.com/cricket/story/_/id/22040188/aakash-chopra-cricketer-endless-quest-honour).
On the 2003/04 Australian tour, in which India came as close as it ever had to a Test series win in Australia, Chopra failed to pass 50 in eight innings but fulfilled his role of seeing off the new ball and building platforms for [Virender Sehwag](https://www.edgepedia.org/virender-sehwag) and the middle order, and was part of the side that retained the Border-Gavaskar Trophy[1](https://www.cricbuzz.com/profiles/257/aakash-chopra). Australian captain [Steve Waugh](https://www.edgepedia.org/steve-waugh) identified the opening stands of Sehwag and Chopra as the crucial difference in that series, and [Sunil Gavaskar](https://www.edgepedia.org/sunil-gavaskar) described Chopra as the first real opener India had produced in a while[5](https://www.rediff.com/cricket/interview/akash/20040119.htm).
His international career ended quickly. After an unimpressive home series against Australia he was dropped, with [Gautam Gambhir](https://www.edgepedia.org/gautam-gambhir) picked in his place, and the lack of big scores and attacking shots behind a solid but one-dimensional technique kept him a fringe player thereafter[1](https://www.cricbuzz.com/profiles/257/aakash-chopra). He never played a One Day International for India[1](https://www.cricbuzz.com/profiles/257/aakash-chopra).
## Domestic career
Chopra made his first-class debut for Delhi in the 1996-97 season, finishing it with 422 runs at 70.33 including two centuries, and earned a [Duleep Trophy](https://www.edgepedia.org/duleep-trophy) place in his first year[6](https://www.hindustantimes.com/cricket/players/Aakash-Chopra-3519). He spent eleven seasons with Delhi, playing more than 100 matches and scoring more than 8,000 runs, and captained the side[7](https://indianexpress.com/article/cities/delhi/aakash-set-to-begin-fresh-innings-with-rajasthan/).
**Delhi title and move to Rajasthan.** In the 2007/08 [Ranji Trophy](https://www.edgepedia.org/ranji-trophy) he scored 783 runs as Delhi won the title, and he also made an unbeaten double century on an India A tour of South Africa[1](https://www.cricbuzz.com/profiles/257/aakash-chopra). After the 2007-08 season he moved to [Rajasthan](https://www.edgepedia.org/rajasthan) as a professional, submitting a no-objection certificate from the Delhi association[7](https://indianexpress.com/article/cities/delhi/aakash-set-to-begin-fresh-innings-with-rajasthan/).
Rajasthan was where his domestic career peaked. He played an important part in the team's rise from the Plate League to the Ranji Trophy title in 2010-11, scoring 539 runs at 89.83 that season including his highest first-class score of 301 not out, and contributed 615 runs at 43.92 from nine games when Rajasthan successfully defended the title in 2011-12[3](https://www.bcci.tv/news/article/aakash-chopra-moves-from-rajasthan-to-hp). In July 2012 he announced a further move, to [Himachal Pradesh](https://www.edgepedia.org/himachal-pradesh), for the 2012-13 season[3](https://www.bcci.tv/news/article/aakash-chopra-moves-from-rajasthan-to-hp).
In the shorter formats his opportunities were limited. He was signed by the [Kolkata Knight Riders](https://www.edgepedia.org/kolkata-knight-riders) for the inaugural IPL in 2008 and played seven matches, scoring 53 runs at an average of 8.83, with his last IPL appearance in April 2009[1](https://www.cricbuzz.com/profiles/257/aakash-chopra). In 2011 the [Rajasthan Royals](https://www.edgepedia.org/rajasthan-royals) picked him on the strength of his Ranji form for Rajasthan[6](https://www.hindustantimes.com/cricket/players/Aakash-Chopra-3519).
## Books and media
Chopra wrote two books about his career. *Beyond the Blues* was an account of the 2007-08 season with Delhi, and *Out of the Blue* charted Rajasthan's rise to the 2010-11 Ranji Trophy title[4](https://www.espn.com/cricket/story/_/id/22040188/aakash-chopra-cricketer-endless-quest-honour) • [3](https://www.bcci.tv/news/article/aakash-chopra-moves-from-rajasthan-to-hp).
After retiring he became a commentator and analyst, working in both Hindi and English, and runs a YouTube channel of tactical cricket analysis, player assessments, and match predictions with about 5.13 million subscribers[2](https://www.inditubedb.com/guides/aakash-chopra).
## References
1. [Aakash Chopra Profile, Cricbuzz](https://www.cricbuzz.com/profiles/257/aakash-chopra)
2. [Aakash Chopra YouTube Channel Guide, InditubeDB](https://www.inditubedb.com/guides/aakash-chopra)
3. [Aakash Chopra moves from Rajasthan to HP, BCCI News](https://www.bcci.tv/news/article/aakash-chopra-moves-from-rajasthan-to-hp)
4. [The cricketer's endless quest for honour, ESPNcricinfo](https://www.espn.com/cricket/story/_/id/22040188/aakash-chopra-cricketer-endless-quest-honour)
5. ['They weren't the same Aussies', Rediff Cricket](https://www.rediff.com/cricket/interview/akash/20040119.htm)
6. [Aakash Chopra Profile, Hindustan Times](https://www.hindustantimes.com/cricket/players/Aakash-Chopra-3519)
7. [Aakash set to begin fresh innings with Rajasthan, The Indian Express](https://indianexpress.com/article/cities/delhi/aakash-set-to-begin-fresh-innings-with-rajasthan/)
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*Topic: Encyclopedia › Sports, games, and recreation › Cricket › Cricket people and teams › People › Men's international cricketers › Indian men's cricketers › Indian cricketers of the 2000s and 2010s*
*Initially written Sep 17, 2026 · Reviewed: Sep 17, 2026; Sep 18, 2026; Sep 30, 2026; Oct 21, 2026 · Edited: Sep 18, 2026; Oct 12, 2026; Oct 21, 2026 · Last review: Oct 21, 2026*
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