Gavaskar baffled by Gambhir, Rohit favouring Pant over Kohli at No. 4: 'Talking about a man who got almost 9000 runs'
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In a single session, India went from bowling out Bangladesh for 233 runs to trailing by just 95 after openers Yashasvi Jaiswal and captain Rohit Sharma went into Bazball mode on Day 4 of the second and final Test. The pair not only scored the fastest fifty-run stand in Test history, but India also amassed the quickest-ever team century as the hosts roared to 138 for two, before going into Tea break at the Green Park stadium.
Yes, there were conversations that the washed-out Day 2 and 3 in Kanpur, owing to rain and poor outfield conditions, implied a strong possibility of a draw, which could subsequently leave India in a precarious spot as they chase a third successive WTC final qualification. Despite the odds being low, India seemed clear with their intent to give their fullest to pull off a victory.
After Jasprit Bumrah and R Ashwin cleaned up the Bangladesh line-up after Lunch, folding the visitors for just 233 runs, where Mominul Haque was the pick of the batters with his record-extending 13th century in the format, Jaiswal and Rohit turned Test cricket in T20 format with a flurry of sixes and boundaries.
India reached the fifty-run mark in just 18 deliveries and amassed the century in 61 balls amid the dismissal of Rohit for 11-ball 23 and Jaiswal for 72 off 51. Up next was Virat Kohli to carry the momentum forward and make the most of the opportunity to bounce back from his string of low scores on home turf. However, it was Rishabh Pant who walked in at No. 4, leaving former India captain Sunil Gavaskar baffled as he questioned the logic behind head coach Gautam Gambhir and Rohit's strategy.
Murali Kartik, who was present in the commentary box alongside Gavaskar, reckoned that India wanted the left-right combination and hence Pant was sent ahead of Kohli, but the India legend admitted that call was "surprising." He added: “You are talking about a man who got almost 9000 runs in Test cricket batting at No. 4.”
Is this the first time Kohli has batted outside No. 4?
The most recent instance of India favouring a left-handed batter at No. 4 ahead of Kohli was in the tour of West Indies last year when Ishan Kishan had scored a fifty on his debut in Port of Spain. A year before then, in Mirpur, in a Test against Bangladesh, Axar Patel, also a left-hander, was sent ahead of Kohli.
Overall, the former India captain has batted 31 times in his career below No. 4, and has four centuries as well, three at No. 5 and one at No. 6, where he last batted in 2012.
