Aakash Chopra believes Shreyas Iyer’s probable absence from the first Test against Australia has put India in jeopardy.
Rohit Sharma’s side will face Pat Cummins’ team in a four-match Test series. And the first game begins on February 9 at Nagpur Cricket Stadium. Iyer, who missed the ODI series against New Zealand owing to a back issue, is said to be recovering slowly. He is unlikely to be available for the Border-Gavaskar Trophy opener.
Chopra believes KL Rahul is ahead of Shubman Gill in the Indian Test opening pecking order, and he elaborates.
Rahul had a strong tour to England in 2021, scoring a century in the first Test against South Africa later that year. Last year, though, he had a poor season, accumulating 137 runs at an awful average of 17.12 in four games.
Aakash Chopra, however, believes Gill will begin the batting alongside Rohit Sharma, with Rahul playing in the middle order, observing:
“Shubman Gill’s case is very strong (to open with Rohit) because he is coming after scoring runs in Bangladesh as well and no one has scored more runs than him in 2023. The guy is not taking the name of stopping. So you think you can get him to open. If he is made to open with Rohit Sharma, KL Rahul might be sent to bat down the order,” Chopra stated on his YouTube channel.
The former Indian opener believes the hosts may not want to play Suryakumar Yadav in the opening Test of the crucial series against Australia.
Chopra continued by noting that Rishabh Pant will be much missed in India. He did, however, suggest that Rahul is unlikely to be given the wicket-keeping gloves, with Srikar Bharat or Ishan Kishan doing so in addition to batting at No. 6.