AUS vs IND: Three possible opening partners for Shikhar Dhawan in ODIs and T20Is
Indian team gears up for the 3-match ODI series against Australia which will mark their comeback to International cricket after nearly ten months. India will be sporting a retro-style jersey which was used in the 1992 World Cup, the first-ever edition of CWC in coloured clothing. Ahead of the series, Indian team face a selection headache of fixing their opening duo. The in-form Shikhar Dhawan will be the first choice opener due to his experience but the gap left over due to absence of Rohit Sharma is not an easy one to fill.
Here are the options which Indian team has got for the ODI series to partner Shikhar Dhawan at the top:
3. Shubman Gill:
Shubman Gill made his ODI debut at the start of 2019 in New Zealand where he scored 16 runs in two games while batting at No.3. In general, the youngster has done well in the 50-over format as he has scored 2280 runs at an average of 45.6 in List A cricket with help of six centuries. For the second-string Indian teams (India A), the Punjab batsman has scored 1426 runs at an average of 49.
Four of Shubman’s six List A hundreds came while playing as an opener. However, the Indian team might not risk the 21-year-old straight away against a pace attack containing the likes of Pat Cummins and Mitchell Starc. The Aussies bowlers could well bring down the confidence of Gill ahead of the Test series where he might be needed to play in the absence of both Virat Kohli and Rohit.
2. KL Rahul:
KL Rahul has been India’s key player at the top when it comes to the T20I format and has earned decent success doing the same in ODI cricket. At the start of 2020, Rahul was given the role of wicketkeeper which is helping India to play an extra batting option. This move has moved KL Rahul down to No.4 and lower in the ODI line-up. Batting at No.4 and No.5, Rahul has got a couple of quick-fire fifties and even a big hundred against New Zealand leading India to not alter with his new role in the ODI side.
1. Mayank Agarwal:
Another day, another Kings XI opener century ?
Mayank Agarwal’s first ever IPL ton ?
Runs 1️⃣0️⃣0️⃣
Balls 5️⃣1️⃣
Sixes 7️⃣
Fours 1️⃣0️⃣
SR 2️⃣1️⃣2️⃣⚬0️⃣0️⃣Take a bow ?#KXIPvsRR #CricketForAll pic.twitter.com/BgfYKVaNUp
— Cricingif (@_cricingif) September 27, 2020
Mayank Agarwal seems to be the best option India has got to pair with Shikhar Dhawan at the top. The Karnataka batsman was in top-notch form during the IPL 2020 with his aggressive batting display. Mayank, in general, has got great numbers in the 50-over cricket. He has scored 4035 runs across 87 List A matches at an average of 48.03 and a strike rate of 100.84.
Since the beginning of 2018 itself, Mayank aggregated 2156 runs in only 41 List A games at a whopping average of 56.74 and scored runs at 105.2 strike rate. He also scored eight of his 13 career centuries during this period. Mayank scored just 36 runs during the 3-match ODI series in New Zealand at the start of the year but is expected to do well this time around given his form and success in the previous Australian tour.
