After beating England by 49 runs in the second T20I, the Indian team, led by Rohit Sharma, has a 2-0 lead over England that can’t be taken away.
After being told to bat first at Edgbaston on Saturday, the visitors put up 170/8 thanks to Ravindra Jadeja’s 46 runs without being out. The target was way too high for England to reach. In the powerplay overs, Bhuvneshwar Kumar and Jasprit Bumrah worked their magic. In the end, the hosts were only able to score 121 runs in 17 overs.
India’s new opening combination was one of the most interesting things to learn from the competition. Most people thought that Virat Kohli would start the inning, but Rishabh Pant walked out with the captain, Rohit Sharma instead.
The visitors got off to a great start because Pant looked in good shape, played positively, and scored 26 runs off of 15 balls. Rohit also scored quickly, getting 31 runs in 20 balls. Kohli, on the other hand, didn’t make the most of his chance. He came in at No. 3 but only scored one run before he was out.
With the T20 World Cup coming up in Australia, it makes you wonder if this is the best team for India’s needs. So, let’s look at three reasons why putting Rohit and Kohli at the top of the order will be much better for the team.
#1 It is the most experienced pair
Some people think that in T20 cricket, your best batters should get to face the most balls. By having Rohit and Kohli open the innings, India’s two most experienced batters will be in charge right from the start.
In recent years, the way India bats has changed in a way that shows more positive intent. Rohit has led the way in this direction, and since the overs are limited, Kohli should be able to go after the seamers right away.
Last year, at the end of the home series against England, Kohli, who was captain at the time, said that he would rather bat first with Rohit. Even though KL Rahul is about to come back from injury, this could be the best chance for that wish to come true.
#2 Gives the middle order more freedom
When it comes to taking advantage of good matchups, entry points are more reliable and useful than batting positions.
Suryakumar Yadav, Rishabh Pant, Hardik Pandya, and Dinesh Karthik could be in the middle order for India at the T20 World Cup later this year. This makes this even more important.
Pant can be moved up the list if a shorter leg-side boundary needs to be taken advantage of. In the same way, Suryakumar is one of the few players who can do a lot of different things against spin. Both can also be held back for slog overs, in case Pandya needs to be moved up the order because of a fast start.
With this flexibility being a win-win for India, it only helps them if Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli walk out to open the innings.
#3 Kohli’s trouble with spin in the middle overs
Since a long time ago, a lot has been written about this problem. So much so that it goes back to when Kohli’s form wasn’t anything to worry about either.
Both IPL teams and teams from other countries have used spin bowling in the middle overs to stop the former Indian captain. Since Suryakumar and Pant have recently shown better attacking instincts against that kind of bowling, it makes a good case for Kohli to be used instead in the powerplay overs.
After all, he is still one of the best batters against fast bowling, which will continue to be important in Australia later this year. Rohit is known to be vulnerable to left-arm swings. If Kohli bats with Rohit at the top of the order, this weakness could be neutralized because Kohli is better at dealing with a left-arm swing.
