Bangalore: Despite India’s series-leveling win against England in 2nd T20I, Men in Blue have failed to put a comprehensive show with the bat so far in the series. India’s star-studded batting line-up has managed to muster just 291 runs from two matches.
India’s biggest concern, is the lack of a good opening stand. Since the beginning of the limited-overs series against England, India have missed out on a decent stand for the first-wicket partnership.
After Shikhar Dhawan scored just 12 runs in the first two ODIs, he was replaced by Ajinkya Rahane for the third match. Rahane couldn’t do much as an opener in that match and was bowled for 1. Lokesh Rahul, who was in fine form across formats in 2016, also had a disappointing ODI series where he scored 24 runs from three matches.
To solve India’s opening woes, skipper Virat Kohli decided to open the innings for the team in the T20I series. But nothing changed, as India’s most prolific batsman also looked off-colour with scores of 29 and 21 in the first two T20Is.
While Rahul did find some form back with a fluent 71-run knock at Nagpur, India still continue to struggle with a solid opening stand.
Kohli, who is a regular number three batsman in the team in limited-overs, looks comfortable batting at that spot. At the same position, he scored a century and a fifty in the ODIs against England.
To solve India’s opening woes, selectors can pick Rahane in the team as an opener in place of Manish Pandey. The Mumbai batsman has scored heaps of runs as an opener in the Indian Premier League (IPL) in the past and there is no reason why he cannot succeed at that position, given some backing from the team management.
It remains to be seen whether selectors pick Rahane, or will Kohli continue to open innings even in the third T20I.
Source: Zee News