India vs Australia 2023

Rohit Sharma clears the air on T20I opening pair ahead of the T20I series against Australia

Since Virat Kohli’s maiden T20I hundred in the Asia Cup 2022 game against Afghanistan, it was debated whether he should open the batting. Recently, former India skipper Gautam Gambhir played down the debate by saying that Kohli shouldn’t open the innings. Meanwhile, in the pre-series press conference, India skipper Rohit Sharma made it clear that he and vice-captain KL Rahul will open the innings.

Sharma also maintained that it is good to have options but also made it clear that Kohli will be the third opener for the team. The Mumbai player pointed out that Kohli opens for Bangalore in the Indian T20 League. The 35-year-old revealed that he spoke to head coach Rahul Dravid and both have decided that Virat will open the batting in some of the games before the 20-20 World Cup 2022.

“It is always nice to have options available for you, especially if you are going into the tournament, you want that flexibility. It’s an option for us, and since we have not taken the third opener, he can obviously open,” Rohit told reporters in Mohali.

“He opens for his franchise, and he has done really well. It’s a definite option for us.

“I had a word with Rahul Dravid and we have decided that we might have to open with Virat in few matches. We have seen that in the last match and we are happy,” said Rohit.

KL Rahul’s performance has always gone unnoticed: Rohit Sharma

The India skipper added that KL Rahul’s performances have always gone unnoticed. The former also said that one or two games doesn’t overshadow KL’s past record.

“I don’t think we are going to experiment. KL Rahul is going to be our opener for sure. His performance for India has always gone unnoticed. One or two bad game doesn’t overshadow his past records. We know what KL brings to the table, his presence at the top is very crucial for us,” he said.