Published 10:22 IST, February 4th 2020
Harsha Bhogle wants KL Rahul, Mayank Agarwal to open in ODIs after Rohit Sharma's injury
Harsha Bhogle, on Monday, said that Mayank Agarwal would be ideal to replace Indian vice-captain Rohit Sharma for the upcoming ODIs and open with KL Rahul.
India may have faced a huge loss in the fifth T20I between India and New Zealand at Mount Maunganui when stand-in skipper Rohit Sharma faced an injury in his calf muscle. It was later reported that Sharma was going to sit out of the remaining tour and his replacements would be named soon. Veteran commentator and analyst Harsh Bhogle came forward with his opinion on the master batsman's replacement in the ODI side.
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Harsha Bhogle believes KL Rahul and Mayank Agarwal must open
Mayank Agarwal has not only been in good form but the batsman from Karnataka will also have a lot of chemistry with KL Rahul as the duo has shared the dressing room for their state team already. The two have also spent some valuable time together while playing for the Kings XI Punjab in the IPL so it is highly likely that Agarwal will be opening the innings along with KL Rahul. Agarwal has not played a One-Day International for the country yet so this opportunity will be a great platform for Agarwal to make his mark.
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Agarwal already solidified his spot in the Test line-up in the series against South Africa last year where he scored a wonderful double century. At the time of writing this report, the BCCI has announced Rohit's replacements for both formats and it is indeed Mayank Agarwal who will replace the Hitman in the white-ball matches. The two red-ball matches which are to follow will see young Shubman Gill replace Rohit at the top of the order. Along with Gill, young batting superstar Prithvi Shaw will also be making a comeback into the Test squad after a troublesome 2019.
Updated 10:22 IST, February 4th 2020