Yashasvi Jaiswal is confirmed to be one of the openers, but his partner at the top of the order is yet to be decided.
The squad for the upcoming five-match Test series against England will be announced soon. India is entering a new phase, as both Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli have recently retired from Test cricket. Their absence leaves a big gap in the team that now needs to be filled.
Yashasvi Jaiswal is confirmed to be one of the openers, but his partner at the top of the order is yet to be decided. Two former selectors have shared their views on who should open alongside Jaiswal in this important series.
Saba Karim, who was part of India’s senior men’s selection committee from 2012 to 2016, shared his thoughts in an interview with Sportskeeda. He believes Abhimanyu Easwaran should be chosen to open the innings for India. According to him, Easwaran has been in the domestic circuit for many years, has solid technique, keeps the scoreboard ticking by rotating the strike, and is also capable of playing attractive shots. Karim feels these qualities are ideal for a Test opener.
He also mentioned that pairing Easwaran with Yashasvi Jaiswal would give India a strong left-right opening combination. Karim urged the selectors and team management to place their trust in Easwaran, as he is confident the batter can do well at the international level.
“I want Abhimanyu Easwaran to open the innings for India. He’s been around for so many years, he’s technically a very correct batter, he’s a busy player, he can rotate the strike, and he can also play some good shots. And in my opinion, you need an opening batter like that. Along with Yashasvi Jaiswal, we can have a solid left-right combination at the top.
“So the selectors and the team management need to trust him with that kind of responsibility for the team. I am sure he’s capable of doing well for India,” said Saba Karim.
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Former India off-spinner and ex-selector Sarandeep Singh, wants the current selection panel to make full use of Sai Sudharsan’s excellent recent form. He feels that Abhimanyu Easwaran should have been picked a couple of years ago when he was scoring heavily, but now he hasn’t played much.
In Sarandeep’s view, Sai Sudharsan should open the innings with Yashasvi Jaiswal. While Easwaran can still be included in the squad, he believes Sudharsan is the better choice at the moment. He also pointed out that Easwaran is more of a specialist opener and doesn’t fit well in other positions in the batting order.
“Abhimanyu Easwaran should have played a couple of years back, when he was scoring a lot of runs. He hasn’t played much of late. If you were to ask me, I’d go Sai Sudharsan with Yashasvi Jaiswal. You can have Abhimanyu Easwaran in the 15. But if we are comparing him with Sai Sudharsan, Easwaran cannot bat anywhere other than as an opener,” he told Sportskeeda.
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