Rohit Sharma at No. 5 bodes well for India as he can be destructive when the ball gets old, and against Nathan Lyon, feel two former Australia captains. Where will Rohit Sharma bat? This seems to be the biggest question heading into the day-night Test between India and Australia in Adelaide starting in 48 hours’ time. Rohit’s return after he missed the first Test due to paternity leave is good news for India, but it also cast doubt over their Playing XI for the pink-ball Test, more so the batting order. Rohit and Shubman Gill are believed to slot back into the team, replacing Devdutt Padikkal and Dhruv Jurel, but what happens to the line-up? Will India risk breaking up Yashasvi Jaiswal and KL Rahul – who stitched a record opening stand in the 2nd innings of the Perth Test or will Rohit give up his place at the top of the order to give the unit more balance?
Apparently, former Australian cricketers Michael Clarke and Aaron Finch are more tilted towards the latter. The 2015 World Cup-winning captain Clarke reckons Rohit at No. 5 is a great move, making him more threatening against both pace and spin. Besides, the pink ball does a lot of tricks under lights, which, considering Rohit’s attacking batting, could prove counter-productive for the Australians. “I think he will bat at No. 5 in the Test match. They’ll leave KL Rahul up at the top. Shubman Gill looks fit as well; he made some runs, so he will come back in at No. 3. Virat 4, and I think the skipper will bat 5. If he wants to open, he opens; if he wants to bat 5, he’ll bat five. It’s his role to work out what’s best for the team and go with that,” Clarke said on ‘Around the Wicket’ podcast.
“In Australian conditions, I can understand if he does bat five, now that KL Rahul looked good in the first Test. He is extremely aggressive, takes on the short ball, dominates spin bowling, and will look to be ultra-aggressive to Nathan Lyon through the middle of the innings. So yeah, if he chooses to bat 5, I can see why.” Clarke’s sentiments were echoed by Finch, who too feels Rohit at five is a great bet for India. Before being promoted as India’s Test opener in 2019 after a wonderful World Cup, Rohit had mostly batted at either five or six in the first half of his career. In 10 matches batting at five, Rohit has scored 427 runs at an average of 29. At six, his returns are much better – 1037 runs at an average of 54.57, including three centuries. Come Adelaide, if Rohit bats at either of these two positions, Finch reckons it’ll be a scary proposition for Australia.
“If he bats at five, with the ball getting a little bit softer, it can be hard to score. But India are so aggressive through that middle order. It will be a fascinating watch because that team looks a lot better with Rohit at 5, in my opinion. KL Rahul looked the best of the Indian batters in really difficult conditions, particularly in the first innings, so they’ll leave him at the top,” said Finch.
