Players who have played at number four for  India since Virat Kohli took charge

#3 Ajinkya Rahane

In the 2015 World Cup, it was Ajinkya Rahane who walked in to the bat at number four. However, in the following days, the team management was not convinced by his suitability for the role. Former Captain M.S Dhoni openly questioned the Mumbaiker's ability to rotate the strike in the middle order. Rahane has spent the last couple of years primarily as a backup opener. Since he took over, Virat Kohli made it clear that the team management only sees him as an opener.

However, the series against South Africa this year saw a U-turn as Rahane returned to the number four slot. In five innings, the Test team's vice-captain scored 140 runs with the highest score of 79 at a rather unimpressive strike rate of 76.

Overall in his career, Rahane has made 843 runs while batting at number four at an average of 36.65. Arguably, Rahane is the most consistent player among the players the team has tried at the spot. However, the position has never seemed the right fit for him. His strike rate, batting at number four is 83.71. All through his career, Rahane's strike rate in the format is 78.63. While one of India's most technically astute players, he struggles to rotate the strike and accelerate the scoring rate. Hence, India has had to look for other options at number four.