Even though Team India has done a reasonably good job in the 50-over format since World Cup 2015, the conundrum concerning the No. 4 spot still continues.
The likes of Yuvraj Singh, Ajinkya Rahane, KL Rahul, Manish Pandey, Kedar Jadhav, Hardik Pandya, Dinesh Karthik and Ambati Rayudu have been given opportunities to seal the key batting slot since the last World Cup. While most of them have had their fair share of good moments at No. 4, none of them have really managed to make the crucial batting position his own.
Amidst the dilemma, former India captain and Delhi Capitals advisor Sourav Ganguly has said that Rishabh Pant could be the answer to India's No. 4 woes before adding IPL 2019 will decide who will bat in that position during the upcoming ICC World Cup.
"Look at how Pant played in the last IPL. In ODIs, Pant is coming in and going out because MS Dhoni is there and that doesn't help. Pant is your future. For the next 10 years you will see a lot of him. He will be a huge asset for the Indian team," Ganguly quoted as saying by IANS.
"Many choices are there but I think the IPL will in a way decide who will get that position. I had said (Cheteshwar) Pujara because he has been in good form. I saw (Rahul) Dravid do the role when I was captain. If you don't have an option you can try him. Pant or (Ambati) Rayudu could be an option. We can give our opinion, but somewhere I feel Kohli knows who it should be," he added.
Earlier, India head coach Ravi Shastri had claimed that he fancies sending Virat Kohli at No. 4 in order to prevent him from the early trouble in the English conditions during the World Cup 2019. Ganguly, however, feels the Indian captain is an ideal man for the No.3 slot.
"Kohli can play at any position and will score runs. But I prefer No.3 for him," he remarked.
Ganguly also rubbished the notion that the current Indian team relies heavily on Kohli.
"These guys are really good. We didn't think we will lose the final in the Champions Trophy. This team has a lot of talent. They will be favourites to win the trophy even though I don't believe in the tag. You have (Shikhar) Dhawan, Rohit (Sharma), Dhoni, Kohli, (Jasprit) Bumrah, and others. I have no advise for this team, I just hope they play freely,” the former skipper opined.
"Kohli is huge and all generations have had such class players. Every generation has produced champions and Kohli is a champion but I honestly believe that this Indian team has the arsenal apart from Kohli to do well. This is a very good side which doesn't have too many weaknesses," he concluded.
