Ahead of India’s third Super 12 game against Afghanistan, legendary Sunil Gavaskar has advised the team management to play vice-captain Rohit Sharma as an opener. Rohit got demoted at number 3 against New Zealand as India decided to open with the pair of Ishan Kishan and KL Rahul. Considering how the plan got backfired, Gavaskar believes India’s vice-captain should return to his original batting position.
"He's got to bat at the top of the order; it's as simple as that. Let's forget what happened in the previous game. You saw that it didn't work (playing Rohit at 3) so you've got to go with somebody like Rohit Sharma," Gavaskar told Sports Today.
Moreover, Gavaskar reckons it will do good for Ishan as well, as he will have a license and can swing his bat freely down the order without any fear.
"What it does is it actually helps young Ishan Kishan - if Suryakumar Yadav is not fit still - because when he goes down the order, there are few overs left and he can swing his bat freely because there's no question of doing anything otherwise... Open with Rohit Sharma because he's the kind of batsman that once he plays 15 overs you are pretty much guaranteed to have a [score of] 180-200," the 72-year-old added.
India have lost both of their Super 12 matches against Pakistan and New Zealand and are on the fifth position in Group 2 with no points in their account. Afghanistan, on the other hand, are on second place with two wins and four points in three matches.
Even though India’s chances for the last four of the event are bleak, the Men in Blue will still stay alive in the tournament if they manage to beat Afghanistan by a hefty margin.
