Former India all-rounder Yuvraj Singh has opined that Rohit Sharma should be given six Test matches to prove himself as an opener. As per Yuvraj, the team management has given chances to KL Rahul and Rohit should also be given a long run to prove himself.
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“Now if you are making Rohit Sharma open in Tests, you should give him 6 Tests and tell him Rohit, you have got 10-12 innings, go and play your game, nobody will say anything. You gave so many chances to KL Rahul, so whoever is your opener, give him those 6 Test matches so that he can go and express his game,” he told Aaj Tak.
For the first time in his Test career, Rohit will be opening the innings in the longest format when India take on South Africa in the opening Test in Vizag. He is expected to be given complete series, based on which the team management will decide whether he will continue to open in Tests or not.
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India, since the outgoing of Virender Sehwag and Gautam Gambhir, have never had a fixed opening combination. Shikhar Dhawan and KL Rahul were inconsistent during their run while Murali Vijay also got dropped after Australia tour in 2018/19.
Prithvi Shaw, with a century on his debut, looked set for a long run but an injury to him ruled him out. He is currently banned and can only make a comeback after November 15. Mayank Agarwal, since his debut, has done well and is expected to be given more chances.
The lack of openers and a packed middle-order saw selectors name Rohit as the designated opener for South Africa series and it will be sort of ‘second debut’ for team India’s white-ball vice-captain.
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Rohit’s fortunes in limited-overs cricket changed after he was asked to open six years after his international debut and he would hope for better results as an opener in Tests as well.
Team India does have a reserve opener in form of Shubman Gill and should the openers not perform well in South Africa series, the former India U-19 players could be asked to open against Bangladesh. Both Rohit and Agarwal will hope to do well and fix their place going ahead.
The first Test of the series will be played in Vizag from October 2. Pune and Ranchi will host the second and third Test from October 10 and 19, respectively.