"Virat Kohli is our third opener for the World Cup"- India captain Rohit Sharma
Team India skipper Rohit Sharma has made a big revelation ahead of the three-match T20I series against Australia. While speaking on Virat Kohli’s chances of opening in the T20 World Cup, Rohit revealed that Kohli is a definite option for the role. He clarified that as India are not taking a third opener to Australia and Kohli will slot into the role if required.
"For us, we understand the quality of all our players and what they bring for us. But yeah, it is an option (Virat Kohli opening) for us, we will always keep that in mind. Since we have not taken a third opener, he opens for his franchise in the IPL and he has done really well, so it is a definite option for us," Rohit said during the press conference in Mohali ahead of the opening T20I against the Aussies.
Kohli scored a breathtaking 122 of 61 deliveries against Afghanistan in the recently concluded Asia Cup, which brought an end his century drought of 1020 days. In the absence of Rohit Sharma, who was rested for the final Super 4 game, Kohli opened the innings with Rahul and treated the Dubai crowd to some electrifying strokeplay.
Speaking further on the same, Rohit added, "Virat Kohli is our third opener and he will open in some of the games. In the last match of Asia Cup, we were happy with the way he played. But KL Rahul will open the batting in the World Cup, we do not want to experiment with that position a lot, his performance sometimes goes quite unnoticed."
"He is a very important player for Team India. For us, I just want to make it clear, we are clear in our thought process. We do not have any confusion, we are very clear what KL Rahul brings to the table for us, he is a quality player and is very important for us. His presence at the top is very crucial for us," the Indian skipper said.
In the past, KL Rahul’s style of batting has been questioned on several occasions by experts, especially in the T20 format. He tends to get bogged down in the middle overs, but the team management has persisted with him because of his undoubted class.
The Indian players arrived in Mohali on Saturday (September 17), which will be the venue for the opening T20I against Australia. The return of Jasprit Bumrah and Harshal Patel to the team will be a huge confidence booster for India ahead of the T20 World Cup.
Mohammed Shami tested positive for COVID-19 and was subsequently released from the squad. Umesh Yadav has been named as his replacement and is expected to get a game straightaway.
Rohit Sharma felt that it wouldn’t have been appropriate to fly in Mohammed Siraj for a couple of games. Siraj is currently in England,plying his trade for Warwickshire in the County Championship.
Rohit said:
"There were few options, but few of them are injured like Prasidh. Siraj is playing county, we do not want him to fly all the way, maybe play one or two games. That won't be fair. Obviously, Shami unfortunate incident with him. Avesh was quite sick in the Asia Cup and he needs some time to recover.
From fitness point of view, he needed some time and rebuild his fitness. All those things were considered. Guys like Umesh, Shami, who have been bowling for a long time, they do not need to be playing a format to be considered," said Rohit.
Final test before the main exam for Team India
The ODI series against Australia kicks off from 20th September (Tuesday). While Mohali will host the series opener, Nagpur (Vidarbha Cricket Association Stadium) and Hyderabad (Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium) will be the venues for the last two matches slated t0 be played on 23rd and 25th September.
The three-match T20I series against Australia will be followed by an equal number of matches against South Africa. It will be a dress rehearsal for the Men in Blue to get their combinations right ahead of the showpiece event in Australia. The 8th edition of the T20 World Cup will be played in Australia from October 16 to November 19.
India squad for the Australia series: Rohit Sharma (c), KL Rahul (vice-captain), Virat Kohli, Suryakumar Yadav, Deepak Hooda, Rishabh Pant, Dinesh Karthik, Hardik Pandya, R. Ashwin, Yuzvendra Chahal, Axar Patel, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Harshal Patel, Deepak Chahar, Jasprit Bumrah, Umesh Yadav.