Ace Indian off-spinner R Ashwin has shared his thoughts on the conundrum of who should open the innings for India as the management is flooded with options right now. While Rohit Sharma has his spot sealed, the spot for his partner at the top and the backup slot is still open.
India has tested Shubman Gill and Ishan Kishan and both responded well and scored a double-century each in ODIs. Before them, the team management had given a long rope to veteran Shikhar Dhawan as well.
Dhawan had opened the innings and captained the Indian team in the interim. However, an issue with his rate of scoring runs caused him to lose his spot in the Indian team.
Sharing his views on his YouTube channel, Ashwin said that India has always had solid top-order batters. He also pointed out how the veteran Shikhar Dhawan remained a ‘silent’ contributor to Team India's success in the limited-overs format.
"Only when the Top 3 failed, we had problems in the past. Shikhar Dhawan, Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli. We talk a lot about Rohit and Kohli, but Dhawan is a stalwart. He was silently doing his job. Will his place be a big void to fill for Team India?," Ashwin said.
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Dhawan has played 167 ODIs for India scoring 6793 runs with 17 centuries and the best score of 143 at an average of 44.11 and a strike-rate of 91.35. However, his recent strike rate over a period of time remained around 70 odd, leading to his axing from the team.
Reacting to Dhawan's snub in ODIs, Ashwin has come up with a noteworthy statement after the Indian think opted to retain Kishan in the white-ball squad.
“Should we go back to Shikhar Dhawan, or should we groom Ishan Kishan, who has just scored a double hundred? Instead of backing a player on the basis of one huge score, we should see what the team requires. Which character will deliver under pressure? Which character will serve us for a long time?,” Ashwin continued.
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However, despite a scintillating 210 against Bangladesh, Ishan Kishan lost his spot to Shubman Gill in the next ODI series against Sri Lanka, while Rohit Sharma and co. opted to give Shubman Gill a longer run and he has responded with a double ton and a century against New Zealand.
“Ishan Kishan was dropped after a double hundred, but Team India has seen Shubman Gill’s run in the past. He has scored hefty runs and has been the most consistent batter for the team over a period of time. He also plays the slog sweep and the traditional sweep, and can cut and pull pacers. Smart batting, quality batting, and acceleration towards the end. He accelerated beautifully in the last four overs and hit that 200 in the Hyderabad ODI,” Ashwin added.
And the next ODI series India will feature in will come against Australia in March.
(Hindustan Times inputs)
