ENG vs IND 2018: Rohit Sharma Clueless Over KL Rahul's Spot in Batting Order

India opener Rohit Sharma, on Wednesday, said he was not sure about KL Rahul’s batting position in the upcoming ODI series against England.

With almost all the batsmen in good form, the team composition of the Men in Blue has been a talking point since the beginning of the tour. In the recently-concluded T20I series, Virat Kohli had surprised everyone by promoting KL Rahul to No. 3 while playing as a floater himself.

Now with a change in format, many think that Kohli would get back to his usual number three spot which can put Rahul’s place in danger. Meanwhile, Rahul has been in stunning form for quite some time now.

( MUST READ – Bhuvneshwar Kumar Cricinfo )

The right-hander has not looked back since this year’s Indian Premier League. Playing for Kings XI Punjab, Rahul opened the innings and scored a staggering 659 runs in 13 games including a 14-ball fifty which is the fastest-ever fifty in IPL.

He, however, was surprisingly left out from the playing eleven for the first T20I against Ireland. The chance came in the second game, and he capitalised by scoring 70 off 36.

The stunning display helped him retain his place in the playing eleven for the first T20I against England and continued his red-hot form with the bat.

Rahul slammed an unbeaten 101 off 54 balls, as India chased down 160 with ten balls to spare.

Now, it will be interesting to see whether Kohli would sacrifice his number three spot or not for the in-form batsman. But as of now, nothing is clear about Rahul’s batting position according to Rohit Sharma.

Speaking on the eve of the first ODI against England, he said,

“Speaking of Rahul batting at 3 or 4,  I don’t know where he is going to bat in the ODIs. He has been in a great form. We will see tomorrow where he bats.  It’ll be at number three or four. I don’t know where the captain wants to bat.  That is the most important question. 

“But again he is a quality player. Wherever he bats, he will make an impact that’s for sure. I am sure he is looking forward for this opportunity because it’s been a long time waiting for him. Also, he certainly wants to make a comeback in the ODI team and make an impact. We have seen how good he is batting recently. So he will be eager to go out there in the middle and make an impact,” he added.

Meanwhile, Kohli batting at number four could end India’s long wait for a settled player at that position.

The Indian camp has been experimenting extensively since the second half of last year but without much success.

Going back to the Sri Lankan tour in July-August last year, through the ODI series against Australia and New Zealand, KL Rahul, Manish Pandey, Kedar Jadhav, Hardik Pandya and Dinesh Karthik were tried at that position, but none of them managed to impress.

The latest to enter the number four spot roulette was Ajinkya Rahane. The right-handed had played at number four in South Africa this year. But while he made a good start, he failed to perform consistently.