Not KL Rahul or Abhimanyu Easwaran, Ex-India cricketer wants this star to open alongside Yashasvi Jaiswal in upcoming Test series against England

Former India cricketer Venkatapathy Raju suggested that Karun Nair or Sai Sudharsan can open for the Shubman Gill-led side in the upcoming Test series against England. India are scheduled to play a five-Test match series against England, which will start from June 20.

Venkatapathy Raju suggested that Shubman Gill should at no. 3 and KL Rahul can bat at number four and choose openers from Yashasvi Jaiswal, Sai Sudarshan and Karun Nair. Two spots in India's playing XI are currently vacant as Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli announced their retirement from the longest format of the game before the England series.

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"I think Gill can be no. 3. So you've got Yashasvi Jaiswal, Sai Sudarshan and Karun Nair. You can choose from these three in that opening slot. Gill can be No. 3 and No. 4 can be KL Rahul. So that adds a little more strength in the batting," Raju told Hindustan Times.

"And then you've got Rishabh Pant and Ravindra Jadeja. You've got all these guys coming back. Gill can come number three. It's just my opinion. We're not talking about what they've planned. So I think if you ask me, because he's leading, so he'll get enough time to just relax and then walk into the bat happily. So Jaiswal and Sudharsan can open, with Gill at No. 3 and KL No. 4. No.5 can be Pant" added Raju

India tour of England will take place from June to August 2025, with matches to be played at Headingley (Leeds), Edgbaston (Birmingham), Lord's (London), Old Trafford (Manchester), and The Oval (London). The upcoming Test series will be India's first Test assignment after a humiliating 3-1 defeat in Australia during the five-Test match series of the Border-Gavaskar Trophy 2024-25.

India squad for England series

Shubman Gill(C), Rishabh Pant(VC), Yashasvi Jaiswal, KL Rahul, Sai Sudharsan, Abhimanyu Easwaran, Karun Nair, Nitish Kumar Reddy, Ravindra Jadeja, Dhruv Jurel, Washington Sundar, Shardul Thakur, Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammed Siraj, Parishdh Krishna, Akashdeep, Arshdeep Singh, Kuldeep Yadav