Cricket News: Team India's experiment with opening pairs in T20 continues
Rahul Dravid and Rohit Sharma's reign has seen several changes for the Men in Blue. From playing with eight different captains to figuring out the best opening pair in the presence of such strong bench strength
Image credit: PA Images Ishan Kishan has got most chances to open In T20IsIndia is in pursuit of a perfect opener
India, in the year 2022, has tried playing as many as seven opening pairs in T20Is. From an innings perspective in 2022, Ishan Kishan has got most chances as an opener (13), followed by Rohit Sharma (9), Ruturaj Gaikwad (6), Rishabh Pant and Sanju Samson (2 each), Deepak Hooda and Suryakumar Yadav (one each).
Through a combination of resting players and prevalent injuries, India is still finalising the opening partner for Rohit Sharma and a full backup option in case KL Rahul's recovery takes time.
When the term sheet mentioned Rishabh Pant as the opening partner for Rohit Sharma, many former players felt the left-right combination experiment with this pair must be given a fair chance. However, he was swapped with Suryakumar Yadav in the next match, leaving most of the former cricketers confused.
"Whatever it was, I completely failed to understand it. You ought to have used Rishabh Pant today if you were planning to use him as the opener for a couple of games. Give him five chances at least," said Mohammed Kaif.
In an attempt to understand the move, Parthiv Patel believes that the batting order is being changed to accommodate former Indian skipper Virat Kohli who is out of touch with the bat.
"He is a legend of the game. And all these changes we are seeing in the opening order, that's happening because they want to try and fit in Virat Kohli in that XI. That's the reason we are seeing Surya and Rishabh Pant opening. That's something I feel," said Parthiv Patel.
Who's the best option?
In the absence of KL Rahul, Rishabh Pant and Ishan Kishan look to be the best fit to open the innings for India alongside Rohit Sharma.
Rishabh Pant had played the opener role more regularly under Rahul Dravid when they were both parts of the India Under-19 set-up. Whereas Ishan Kishan now has long-running opening experience with Rohit Sharma as they both have done it for Mumbai Indians in IPL.
Suryakumar Yadav is ideal to be a middle-order batsman and only play his dominating game from that spot. He should not make his batting vulnerable by making him open the innings.
After the series against West Indies, India have T20I matches in Asia Cup, followed by two back-to-back three-match series against Australia and South Africa at home. Fans would hope for KL Rahul's return and Virat Kohli's resurgence before India takes time to find a suitable opening pair and backups before it's too late.