Indian captain Rohit Sharma has confirmed he will open the innings with Shubman Gill in the upcoming ODI series against Sri Lanka. Rohit feels the youngster deserves a longer run in the team as he has been performing consistently in the ODI format.
Thus, Ishan Kishan, who scored a magnificent double-century against Bangladesh in the third ODI, will have to sit out on the sidelines. Meanwhile, Gill has an impressive average of 57.25 as he has scored 687 runs in 15 matches in his young ODI career.
The youngster from Punjab scored 638 runs in 12 ODI matches at an average of 70.88 and a strike rate of 102.57 in 2022. Ergo, the right-hander deserves his opportunity at the top of the order for the national team.
Rohit Sharma said in the pre-match press conference, “Both openers have done really well. But looking at how both have gone through, I think it is fair that we give Gill a chance to have a fair run because in the last games Gill got a lot of runs as well.
“I am not going to take anything from Ishan. He has been wonderful for us. He got a double hundred and I know what it takes to get a double hundred, it is a great achievement. But just to be honest and be fair to the guys who have done really well before that we need to give those guys enough chances as well.”
Rohit added it would be unfortunate to leave out Ishan Kishan but he feels Shubman Gill deserves his chance at the top of the order.
“It is unfortunate that we won’t be able to play Ishan but looking at how things have panned out for us in the last 8-9 months, looking at how the ODIs have gone through for us, it is fair to give Gill that run and he has done extremely well in that position.
“We will definitely try out and keep Ishan in the mix and see how things pan out for us as we play lot of games ahead.”
Meanwhile, India will have selection headaches as far as picking their middle order is concerned. Rohit revealed players who have performed consistently will get a long run in the team.
“It’s a great headache to have. We will look at the performances of the guys who have done well. The problem happens when we start comparing different formats. We have to look at who has done well for us in ODIs. Guys who have performed will get a run. Form is important, but formats are also important.”
Players like KL Rahul, Shreyas Iyer, and Suryakumar will compete for the middle-order slots in the upcoming ODI series against Sri Lanka.
