What is Rohit Sharma's most ideal batting position for India for 2nd BGT 2024-25?
Team India skipper Rohit Sharma is set to return and lead the side in the second Border-Gavaskar Trophy Test against Australia in Adelaide, starting December 6. While the 37-year-old missed the series opener due to the birth of his second child, Team India overcame his absence in style.
Led by a dominant bowling performance throughout the contest and a resolute batting display in the second innings, India handed Australia their first-ever Test defeat at the Perth stadium by a massive 295 runs. While Rohit's return for the day-night second Test unquestionably strengthens India's playing XI, his batting position has been hogging the headlines over the past week in the build-up to the encounter.
This is thanks to KL Rahul replacing him at the top in the first Test and looking undeniably India's best batter in both innings. After scoring a defiant 26 off 74 under extremely challenging batting conditions in the first innings, Rahul weathered the Aussie pace attack with a 176-ball 77 in the second innings.
Several experts have weighed in on Rohit's batting position for the Adelaide Test and the opinions have been mixed. Some suggest the veteran batter return to the top, while others insist on a move down the order.
Before deep diving into Rohit's ideal batting position for the second Australia Test, let us look at a few former players' take on this subject.
What do the experts say?
Former Indian off-spinner Harbhajan Singh feels Rohit Sharma should open or bat at no lower than No.3 in the second Australia Test.
"I don’t see Rohit coming in at number five or six. Either Rohit will open with Yashasvi Jaiswal, with KL Rahul coming in at number three, or he will bat no later than number three. Number six for Rohit wouldn’t be in best interest of the team. Your top four in batting order should be the four pillars and someone like Rohit at the top would only add greater fillip," Harbhajan told the PTI.
Former opener Sunil Gavaskar wanted Rohit to open the batting, given the short square boundaries at Adelaide that play to his ability to pull.
"I want Rohit Sharma to come back in the opening because Rohit Sharma and Yashasvi Jaiswal had become a pair. Yes, Rohit was not there, that's why K.L. Rahul returned in the opening. I want Rohit to come back because the square boundaries of Adelaide are very small. And Rohit has a habit of pulling. Pulling is a very productive shot for him. So he can make a lot of runs by pulling shots," said Gavaskar to Sports Tak.
Meanwhile, former Indian selector Devang Gandhi suggested the skipper move down to No.6 in the batting order.
"I feel Rohit should come in at No. 6, because Rishabh Pant, too, has shaped up very well at 5...The left-right combo, too, can be maintained that way. It becomes difficult if a middle-order batter tries to become an opener in the latter stages of his career. But it will not be difficult for an opener to go in the middle order, especially for Rohit, who started as a No. 6 batter for India," he told TOI.
Now, we analyze several key factors to figure out where Rohit best fits in the Indian batting order for the second Test.
Rohit's Test batting numbers at different positions
![Rohit has batted at the top in Tests throughout the 2020s [Credit: Getty]](https://statico.sportskeeda.com/editor/2024/12/5ad6b-17332159460804-1920.jpg)
For starters, it is only fair we deep dive into Rohit's Test numbers at different batting positions throughout his career.
The above is self-explanatory in terms of Rohit's experience and success as a Test opener. The stylish batter has scored way more than half his runs at the top with nine of his 12 centuries coming at the position.
Yet, one must not ignore Rohit's success at No.6 - the position he played in for most of the first half of his Test career. Incidentally, the champion batter averages almost 55 at No.6 with an incredible three centuries.
A key factor, however, in all of this is the fact that Rohit has not batted anywhere except as an opener since the start of 2019. Hence, combining the recency factor with experience and success, it is safe to say opening the batting is the most self-beneficial position for the Indian skipper.
Coming to his Test performances at different positions down under, let us take a quick look at the below table.
Unfortunately, Rohit has struggled overall in the red-ball format in Australia, resulting in sub-par numbers across positions.
Yet, he was able to get starts (25+) in three of the four innings during the 2020/21 tour as an opener. Rohit's lone Test at No.3 in the 2014/15 tour was also comparatively fruitful with an average of 46.
However, with nothing standing out among his position-wise numbers in Australia, the overall numbers across positions must take precedence.
Verdict: Rohit returns to the top of the order opening the batting
How Rohit's recent form plays a part in the decision
Now comes the tricky part of the equation - how much of a part should Rohit's recent Test form and the likely conditions in Adelaide play in the decision-making process?
The 37-year-old has been in woeful form in Tests this year, averaging under 30 in 21 innings. Rohit's form more recently has been even worse with an average of 13.30 in his last ten innings and a lone half-century in that stretch.
Considering these struggles, all of which have come as an opener on home soil, the degree of difficulty will only skyrocket for Rohit the opener in a pink-ball Test at Adelaide. The D/N Test at Adelaide has a history of terrorizing opening batters against the new ball and it is worth pondering if Rohit should be thrown under that fire straightaway, given his current form.
In that sense, his best chance of success could be lower down the order at No.5 or 6 when the ball gets softer and run-scoring becomes relatively easier.
Verdict: Rohit should bat No.5 or 6 under several current circumstances
Where should Rohit bat to achieve the best overall team balance?
From Rohit's individual point of view, we now move to what's best for the team cause as they look to take an almost unassailable 2-0 in the best-of-five series with a win at Adelaide.
KL Rahul was undeniably India's best batter in the Perth Test and his second-innings partnership with Yashasvi Jaiswal was a key reason for India's incredible win. With the conditions in Adelaide likely to be just as challenging, India might be best served not to tinker with a solid and in-form opening combination.
Should Shubman Gill return from his injury, his preference for the harder ball with true bounce and excellent current form makes him the obvious choice at No.3. In that case, with Virat Kohli at No.4, Rohit's ideal position to attain optimum team balance would be No.5 or 6.
However, if Gill does miss more time, Rohit could replace Devdutt Padikkal at No.3 - the position closest to opening. That way, neither he nor the team gets massively affected in terms of their respective comfort zone.
Verdict: Rohit should bat at No.3 or 6 (based on Shubman Gill's presence/absence) to maximize India's chances of success.
Conclusion
In conclusion, Rohit Sharma's extensive experience and outstanding numbers at the top make it a tempting option to have him back as the opener to partner Yashasvi Jaiswal. Yet, his recent form coupled with potentially challenging new-ball conditions and the Perth success of the Rahul-Jaiswal opening stand makes No.5 or 6 the ideal place for Rohit on his return.
India could consider batting Rohit at No.3 as a best-of-both-worlds option should Shubman Gill remain sidelined with injury.