KL Rahul or Shubman? Harbhajan makes clear-cut pick for Rohit Sharma's opening partner

Former India cricketer Harbhajan Singh has picked Rohit Sharma's opening partner for the first Test against Australia in the upcoming Border-Gavaskar Trophy. The first Test is all set to begin on 9th February in Nagpur and both the teams are preparing for the same. 

For a long time, there has been a debate about who should open for Team India in the first Test along with Rohit Sharma. KL Rahul will be returning to the Indian team after a break and also he is the team's vice-captain. On the other hand, Shubman has been in red hot form this year and has already smashed 4 hundreds this year in the white ball format. 

KL Rahul has not been in good form of late but he is the team's vice-captain and is expected to open with Rohit Sharma. On the other hand, Shubman has form and also has already scored big hundreds in the ODI's which also makes him a contender to open with Rohit Sharma. 

Harbhajan picks Shubman Gill over KL Rahul 

Former cricketer Harbhajan Singh has picked his openers and thinks that Shubman Gill shall open with Rohit Sharma in the first Test against Australia. 

Shubman Gill Or Kl Rahul

Who Should Open For Team India ? #INDvsAUS https://t.co/tiziHuDqSy

— Harbhajan Turbanator (@harbhajan_singh) February 6, 2023

Harbhajan on his YouTube channel, "The opening partnership is the most important thing. Openers set the tone in any series. According to me, India's openers in the Australia series should be Rohit Sharma and Shubman Gill. The form he is in, Gill is on another level. Even though KL Rahul is a top player, his stats in 2022 are not favouring him at the moment. Whereas Gill is in the form of his life. He has shattered multiple records in recent months."

Throwing weight behind Gill during the discussion, Harbhajan highlighted the batting stats of the Indian opener. In India's previous home assignment, opener Gill became the fifth Indian to score centuries across all formats of the game. “If Team India wants to win this Test series, then Shubman Gill should open with Rohit Sharma", Harbhajan said. 

"After scoring so many runs, I think he deserves to be in the Indian playing XI not for just one game. I think India should stick with Shubman Gill throughout the series. If he plays in the form and confidence that he is in, Gill will score plenty of runs for India. So I hope he gets to play", Harbhajan added.