Sanjay Manjrekar bats for Cheteshwar Pujara as opener for MCG Test

The Indian team management will have its task cut out when its members sit down to pick the playing XI for the crucial second Test against Australia at the Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG). One of their many headaches will be picking the right pair of openers. While Mayank Agarwal is confirmed to open, there is little clarity over who will be his partner. Prithvi Shaw is unlikely to get a chance after his twin failures in the first Test with scores of 0 and 4.

Shaw had failed to impress in the tour games too but the team management still showed faith in the youngster. However, he failed to justify the faith as he flopped in both the innings of the day-night Test at Adelaide. There have been calls from several quarters to replace him with Shubman Gill as the latter looked in good touch in the warm-up matches.

Though, it won’t be surprising if the management decides against giving Gill a chance for the crucial game because of his inexperience as he is yet to make his debut in Tests. There are some other options too – recalling KL Rahul into the elven or trying out Hanuma Vihari as an opener like the previous tour of Australia.

Manjrekar’s suggestion

Only time will tell who opens India’s innings in the all-important Boxing Day encounter. Ahead of the game, Sanjay Manjrekar has come up with another suggestion for the opener’s slot. The former India batsman believes Cheteshwar Pujara could be a good option for the role. Manjrekar opined that there is not much difference in conditions for an opener or the No.3 batsman.

He stated that promoting Pujara could make his life easier and it would also give India a better chance of getting a good start. Manjrekar took to Twitter to express his opinion, tweeting:

I have batted no 3 overseas. You are invariably going in early, facing bowlers with their tails up from ball no 1.
Anyone for Pujara opening? To make his life easier? + better chance of not losing a quick wkt & opposition being on top early. Tell me your top 4 next Test?

— Sanjay Manjrekar (@sanjaymanjrekar) December 23, 2020

Well, Pujara is not new to opening in Test cricket. So far, he has opened in four Tests and has a stunning record as an opener. In those four games, he has smashed 348 runs in just five innings with one century and two fifties.