“I wouldn’t want that,” Ravi Shastri on Virat Kohli opening for India in World Cup

Ex-Indian player and head coach Ravi Shastri recently stated that unless there is an emergency or an injury crisis, he would not prefer Virat Kohli to open the innings for India.

Throughout his career, the former coach has never been afraid to speak his mind. He also stated that Indian opener Kl Rahul, who has been opening alongside Rohit, has been performing commendably and that there is no need to change anything. Cricket has its Jose Mourinho in Ravi Shastri. It’s never a problem for him to get straight to the point.

In light of the upcoming World Cup, India must establish their best eleven, and tinkering with the department with no constraints will inevitably end in tears. The Indian batting order is sorted, with Rohit Sharma, KL Rahul, Virat Kohli, and Suryakumar Yadav as the top four. The benefit of having Virat batting at No. 3 is that he will play through the entire innings and can accelerate when needed. He even provides the option to open in a crisis, which would save India from having to select a backup opener for the team.

KL Rahul is batting beautifully at the top: Shastri

Ravi lauded the ever-dependable KL Rahul, who was out of the team for a brief time following an injury. KL has been India’s best T20 player over the last three seasons, amassing runs at a healthy strike rate. He is coming off a disastrous World T20 performance, so his form will be crucial. Dropping or languishing him lower down the order would undermine his confidence, and that would appear to be unnecessary.

Indian skipper Rohit Sharma has stated that Virat will be India’s backup opener. This demonstrates that being versatile in your field is always advantageous. India would most likely start matches with Rohit and KL as openers, with Kohli playing the role of a drafter.