Who will be Yashasvi Jaiswal’s opening partner in the first Test against Australia in Perth? At the pre-departure press conference, Gautam Gambhir refused to budge. He is still hopeful that Rohit Sharma might be available.
The Indian squad is going to Australia in two batches. Shubman Gill, Mohammed Siraj, Washington Sundar, Akash Deep and Jaiswal left on Sunday. The rest will leave on Monday. The India captain is not part of the pack. There’s an uncertainty over when he will leave for Australia due to personal reasons. There’s a serious question mark over his availability in the Perth Test.
Without him, India’s opening options are limited to KL Rahul and Abhimanyu Easwaran, unless the team management makes a left field choice and picks Dhruv Jurel as an opener. The latter gave a good account of himself in India A’s game against Australia A, scoring 80 and 68 in the two innings.
Between the lines, though, Gambhir probably dropped a hint about who could be the team management’s preferred choice if Rohit doesn’t make it. “There are times when you go with the experienced players as well,” he told reporters. “And that is the quality of the man (Rahul). He can bat at the top of the order, he can bat at No. 3 and he can actually bat at No. 6 as well. So I feel if need be, he can do the job for us, especially if Rohit is not available for the first Test.”
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Rahul was sent to Australia early and turned up for India A, scoring four and 10 in the only game he played. The 32-year-old has experience of opening the innings in Tests in tougher conditions, and he has scored centuries batting in that position. Before the start of the ongoing red-ball season, the Indian team management, however, took a call to play Rahul at No. 6 and allow him to settle in that position. But Rohit’s potential absence is forcing a rethink.
“Imagine how many countries have players like KL who can open the batting and can bat at No. 6 as well,” said the head coach. He added: “Obviously, there’s Easwaran and there’s KL. So we will take a call closer to the first Test if Rohit is not available.”
As regards Rohit’s availability, Gambhir said: “At the moment, there’s no confirmation. But we will let you know what the situation will be. Hopefully he is going to be available, but everything we are going to get to know at the start of the series.”
India’s five-Test series against Australia commences on November 22 in Perth.
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