There are only a couple of months left before the commencement of the World Cup 2023, which will be hosted by India.
India captain Rohit Sharma and head coach Rahul Dravid currently have a head-scratching problem – one which existed heading into the 2019 World Cup as well – the issue of the number 4 position in the ODI side.
In the absence of Shreyas Iyer, the incumbent number 4 who had done very well in that slot before picking up a back injury earlier this year, India tried the likes of Sanju Samson, Suryakumar Yadav, and even Axar Patel, as a left-handed option to break a chain of right-handers, but none of them could cement his spot.
Now, there are reports emerging that the skipper Rohit himself is pondering over taking up the challenge of batting at number 4 in the upcoming Asia Cup 2023.
While making such a drastic move – Rohit has had immense success as an opener in the past decade – this close to the World Cup may sound unnecessary and could be met with a great deal of criticism, if there is one man who isn’t afraid of taking bold calls, it is Rohit Sharma. If this move works, it could even help India lift the trophy.
Here are 2 reasons why Rohit Sharma batting at number 4 in World Cup 2023 could be a good decision:
Rohit Sharma is the most experienced player in the team
Having started his ODI career in 2007, Rohit Sharma is the most experienced player in the side in terms of time in international cricket. He’s played 244 ODIs in his career across all conditions and against the best of the bowlers; only Virat Kohli’s 275 ODI tally is higher in the Indian team than Sharma’s.
And, as it’s commonly said, there is no substitute for experience. If Shreyas Iyer isn’t fit for the Asia Cup, and for the World Cup, then it won’t be a bad call to have Rohit Sharma bat at number 4.
The point here is that it would be better to play the most experienced man in the side at a position in the middle order where India might play someone as inexperienced as Samson, or Suryakumar, or Ishan Kishan. We saw what happened when India used an inexperienced Rishabh Pant at number 4 in the 2019 World Cup semi-final.vs New Zealand.
The number 4 position is a very tricky one, where at batsman will have to adapt to the game situation: he could be coming in at 10/2, which would make him effectively an opener, or he could be coming into bat at 200/2, which would require him to start of briskly without wasting any balls and crack boundaries more often.
Rohit Sharma has done both roles in his career – before being promoted to open the batting, he mostly batted in the middle-order – so it shouldn’t be a problem for him to get going in any situation.
If Rohit bats at number 4, it would allow India to play a left-hander in Ishan Kishan as opener
Another important problem that Rohit coming down to number 4 would solve for India is the need of a left-hander. If Rohit Sharma bats at number 4, India can happily play Ishan Kishan as an opener.
A left-handed batsman is a welcome requirement in India’s batting order which has right-handers until number 6 with Jadeja slotted at 7. Plus, and importantly, Ishan Kishan has had all his ODI success as an opener – double century vs Bangladesh and recently three fifties in West Indies- so opening is Ishan’s best position.
