“He will not play at the top,” Irfan Pathan picks his Indian opening combination for New Zealand ODIs

Former Indian cricketer Irfan Pathan has picked his Indian opening combination for New Zealand ODIs. He said that with the kind of performance Rohit Sharma and Shubman Gill has produced, they cannot remove them. He also suggested team to bat Ishan Kishan at No.4.

“You don’t want to touch Rohit Sharma and Shubman Gill at the top.” – Irfan Pathan

India and New Zealand are all set to lock horns with each other in the white-ball series. The ODI series between the teams will kick start from 18th January in Hyderabad whereas the second and third games will be played on the 21st and 24th January in Raipur and Indore respectively.

It’s fair to say that there’ll be a lot of selection headaches for India going into the match. There has been lots of talk about the Rohit Sharma-led side benching Ishan Kishan after his double century. Shubman Gill was preferred over him as management confirmed that they will give the right-hander a fair run to him for his performances.

But with KL Rahul not being available for the series, it’s fair to say that both Gill and Kishan would be in the mix. But the question still stands who bat w here? The right-hander did a terrific job in the series against Sri Lanka as he smashed a century in the last game whereas the southpaw hasn’t play a game since his double century.

If India beat New Zealand 3-0 then India will be number 1 in all formats.

— Johns. (@CricCrazyJohns) January 17, 2023

With lot of speculations about batting order, Irfan Pathan has given his take. He said that Rohit Sharma and Shubman Gill has done a terrific job as openers and therefore team should continue with them. Speaking on Star Sports, he said:

“He will not play at the top because you don’t want to touch Rohit Sharma and Shubman Gill at the top”

“I don’t see Ishan Kishan batting below No. 4,” says Irfan Pathan

Pathan further suggested that India should bat Ishan Kishan at No.4 with Shreyas Iyer at 5. Adding to his point, he said:

“Virat Kohli will be at No. 3. So where do we have a place, at No. 4? I feel he might get a place at No. 4, Shreyas Iyer might have to go slightly down. The discussion will be only between No. 4 and No. 5. I don’t see Ishan Kishan batting below No. 4. The Indian team might do that but he bats up the order, you can get him to bat maximum at No. 4 but not below that.” He concluded.