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Virat Kohli's childhood coach Rajkumar Sharma recently stated that he was surprised to see Suryakumar Yadav open the innings for India in the T20I series opener against West Indies on Friday.
Speaking on India News Sports, he suggested that the team management will have to identify an ideal playing XI and persist with those players on the road to T20 World Cup 2022.
He recommended that instead of experimenting too much, the side should look to go ahead with a settled lineup. Sharma opined that it would give them a better idea of what combination works best.
Sharma stated:
"It was surprising to see Suryakumar Yadav open the innings. Shreyas Iyer came at No.3 and the order wasn't as we had expected. But maybe Rohit Sharma and Rahul Dravid wanted to experiment a bit.
"But now it's time to settle the team and our best XI should play more games so that we can find our best combination."
With regular opener KL Rahul ruled out for the West Indies T20Is, Ishan Kishan or Rishabh Pant were expected to open the innings for India alongside Rohit Sharma. However, it was Suryakumar Yadav who was promoted up the order.
The right-hander scored 24 runs off 16 deliveries in the fixture. The move did surprise many fans as well, considering India have several other options for that position.
"India can afford to experiment in this series" - Reetinder Sodhi on Suryakumar Yadav's promotion
Former spinner Reetinder Singh Sodhi shared a contrasting view. Speaking in the same discussion, he pointed out that India can look to experiment with their lineup during the ongoing West Indies series.
Sodhi added that he was pleased to see that the Indian think tank are trying out various options as they look to form a formidable team for the forthcoming T20 World Cup.
He expexplained:
"India can afford to experiment in this series. They tried Suryakumar Yadav at the top. While the move wasn't a very successful one and he didn't score big runs, it is good to see the thought process of the side."
India claimed a decisive 68-run victory over West Indies to take a 1-0 lead in the five-match series. The second T20I is set to be played at Warner Park on Monday (August 1).
Watch the full video here:
In your opinion, who should be Rohit Sharma's opening partner in the 2nd T20I? Let us know your thoughts in the comments box down below.
