Indian cricket selectors are looking for the players beyond Shikhar Dhawan as an opening partner of Hitman Rohit Sharma. Recently, Shikhar Dhawan underwent surgery. During a Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy game for Delhi against Maharashtra, he suffered a deep cut on his left knee. Since he made a comeback after the World Cup, he has not been in the best of forms with the bat. In the three T20Is against Bangladesh, he has only scored 91 runs. Team India Selectors are now, therefore, hunting for an opening partner for Rohit Sharma in T20Is.
The two-star batsmen who can become an opening partner for Rohit Sharma
The Syed Mushtaq Trophy Super League match of Mumbai-Punjab was far from a significant fixture between the two teams that were already out of semi-final contention. Prithvi Shaw and Shubman Gill, the two finest young batsmen in the country, are the options for the selection team who are looking beyond Dhawan to play along with Rohit Sharma as an opener in T20Is. Prithvi Shaw is a centurion and has experience of playing two-Test matches and Shubman gill has played in two-ODIs.
Prithvi Shaw was on the show first at the Lalbhai Contractor Stadium, and he pleased the sparse crowd with his audacious stroke play. It was a typical inning of Prithvi Shaw, with brutal leg-side shots and blazing drives through the covers, who punished anything that erred on the fuller or the shorter side.
On the other hand, Shubman Gill who doesn’t rely so much on power as he does on timing. He began with gorgeous cover drives, before expanding his range, showcasing one stroke after the other to match Prithvi Shaw shot for shot. He had little support only from his colleagues and ended up on the losing side, though their respective teams crashed out.
Gill has established himself as one of the finest of the GenNext. He is equipped both temperamentally and technically, providing him an opportunity to make an impact at the international level.
Both Prithvi Shaw and Shubman Gill have reminded selectors of their innate potential as the selectors seek a suitable opening partner for Rohit Sharma in the future. Though Shikhar Dhawan is still around, his propensity to get injured and his waning influence in the shortest format has made his position shaky, forcing Team India selectors to look out for fresher faces, alongside KL Rahul.
