Ex-cricketer says Rohit Sharma shouldn't be given a chance to open Test; read to know why

Mumbai: After India’s squad for the home series against South Africa was announced, the chairman of selectors MSK Prasad had clearly stated that Rohit Sharma would be give a chance to showcase his abilities during the Test series against South Africa.

Earlier, the 32-year-old had received support from Sourav Ganguly, VVS Laxman, Dilip Vengsarkar, Kiran More and Adam Gilchrist.

However, former Indian wicket-keeper batsman Nayan Mongia, who used to open the batting in Tests temporarily, begged to differ in this case. The former Indian cricketer said the move to make Rohit open the batting in the longest format might fail.

In an interview with the Times of India, Mongia stated, “Opening is a specialized job, like ‘keeping. He’s been opening in limited-overs cricket, but Test cricket requires a massive adjustment in mindset. Unless, of course, he decides to stick to what he does in limited-overs cricket - go for the ball. He must stick to his strengths, rather than change his game according to Test cricket. If he does that, it may affect his limited-overs game.”

Mongia further added that the youngsters, who have scored between 800 to 1000 runs in the domestic circuit, should be given a chance to open. Especially the likes of Panchal, Easwaran who are averaging from 50 – 60 must be given a chance. If they are not given a fair chance, that would be unfair from the part of the selectors.

“Why not give chances to those who’ve scored 1,000-800 runs in a season as an opener? The likes of Panchal and Easwaran are averaging 50-60 in domestic cricket. When are they going to get a chance? It’s demotivating for them,” Mongia said.