‘Will we again go by stature’- Sanjay Manjrekar opines continuing with Yashasvi Jaiswal and KL Rahul as openers

After missing the opening Test of the Border-Gavaskar Trophy in Perth, Rohit Sharma is back with the Indian squad. Sharma had given the same excuse for skipping the Perth Test after he and his wife had their second child. Yashasvi Jaiswal and KL Rahul opened the innings for India in his absence, and the two of them stitched a partnership for 201 in the second innings.

The management of India is currently faced with the dilemma of whether to continue using the opening lineup or to put Rohit in his typical position now that the captain has returned. Sanjay Manjrekar, a former Indian cricket player and current commentator, has suggested that the squad choose the Rahul-Jaiswal combo in this regard and believes that Rohit’s size shouldn’t interfere with the functioning model.

“Will we once more choose the incumbent senior iconic player based on stature? Based on present realities and common sense, I believe they will make decisions. Even Rohit Sharma would offer to be captain. Therefore, I believe that you should maximise the gains you have already made from that second innings,” Manjrekar added.

In actuality, No. 3 would guarantee Shubman Gill greater success: Sanjay Manjrekar

Shubman Gill has established himself as the designated hitter for the third spot, therefore Rohit might not be selected if the Indian side chooses to maintain the opening lineup from the first Test. The Indian opener may have to settle for the number five place, which, in Manjrekar’s opinion, is meaningless as Virat Kohli has been holding the number four spot for ages.

That number (No. 3) would actually guarantee better success from Shubman Gill, in my opinion, given that it was his first Test match of the series. There won’t be much of a difference between starting the innings and batting at No. 5 for Rohit Sharma as well,” he added.

Therefore, number three would be a good middle ground. Therefore, I believe that the reason we are discussing this matter is that Indian cricket may need to get to a point where batting positions aren’t given as much weight as they are in T20 cricket, which is always changing. Thus, whatever makes cricketing sense is always something that the management of the Indian squad might consider,” Manjrekar said.