India eye to fill up massive void for England Test series after Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli's retirements.
Former India cricketer Venkatapathy Raju has weighed in on the team’s possible combination and advised that either Karun Nair or Sai Sudharsan can open the innings with Yashasvi Jaiswal for the Shubman Gill-led side in the England Test series.
The series will mark the first assignment for Gill as India’s full-time Test captain. In the absence of seasoned campaigners Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma, India will have to fill the massive void. While there are plenty of options for the number 4 spot, the question arises on the vacant opening slot.
KL Rahul opened the innings for India in four out of the five Tests in the Border-Gavaskar Trophy (BGT) 2024-2025 Down Under. He was India’s third leading run-getter in the series with 276 runs in 10 innings across 5 matches, averaging 30.66 with a couple of fifties.
However, Raju feels that KL Rahul should bat in the middle order, maybe at No.4, a position that was locked in by former skipper Kohli for over a decade, while anyone from Sai Sudharsan and Karun Nair can open.
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“Yashasvi Jaiswal, Sai Sudarshan, and Karun Nair. You can choose from these three in that opening slot. So you’ve got Gill at 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.”
Sudharsan, who is yet to make his Test debut, has played for Surrey in the County Championship. He amassed 281 runs in 8 innings at an average of 35.13 that included a hundred and a fifty. He also has a decent record in domestic cricket, having racked up 1957 runs in 29 first-class games, averaging 39.93.
On the other hand, Nair returned to the Test squad after a gap of 8 years following his stunning domestic season across all formats. After moving from Karnataka to Vidarbha for the 2023–24 domestic season, Nair amassed 863 runs in nine matches at an average of 54, helping Vidarbha clinch its third Ranji Trophy title.
Meanwhile, this will also be Yashasvi Jaiswal’s first England tour with the Indian team. He has been exceptional for India as an opener, having scored runs in bulk in the West Indies, India, and Australia, except for the South Africa tour. He played an instrumental part in helping India to 4-1 series win over England at home by amassing over 712 runs with a couple of double hundreds.
India are all set to take on England in a five-match Test series, starting June 20 in Headingley, Leeds.
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