I will be surprised if Ajinkya Rahane does not promote himself to number four: Ajit Agarkar

Former Indian cricketer Ajit Agarkar believes that this is the time for India’s stand-in captain Ajinkya Rahane to step up and take the responsibility of successfully handling the team. India will be looking forward to overcoming their nightmarish defeat by 8 wickets against Australia in the Adelaide Test and level the four-match series in the second Test, starting from December 26 in Melbourne.

India’s regular skipper Virat Kohli across all the formats headed back to India after participating in the first Test against Australia at Adelaide Oval on paternity leave to be with his wife Anushka Sharma during the birth of their first child. Thus, the responsibility of leading the team in the last three Tests fell on the vice-captain Ajinkya Rahane.

Speaking about Rahane leading the Indian squad, Ajit Agarkar, who is in contention of becoming India’s chief selector, reckoned that in the absence of Kohli, the 32-year-old should promote himself up the order and bat at crucial number 4 position. Also, the veteran cricketer backed Shubman Gill to open the innings for India in place of Prithvi Shaw, who is suffering from the poor form on the Australian soil.

Ajit Agarkar backs Shubman Gill to open for India

There are high chances of Gill making his debut in the purest format of the game in the Melbourne Test as Shaw is expected to warm the bench after his horrendous outing in the first game. Showering praises on Gill, Agarkar stated that Gill is a promising youngster and has done exceedingly well for Punjab in domestic cricket while opening the innings.

“I think Rahane should promote himself to number four in Kohli’s absence. He has the experience and he has scored runs away from India. This is the time when a leader needs to stand up, I will be surprised if Rahane does not promote himself to number four,” Ajit Agarkar said as quoted by The New Indian Express.

“I think Shubman Gill should play, I have been advocating for that for a while, he has the potential. I know he opens for Punjab in domestic cricket, but if someone like him does well, he can serve Indian cricket for a long time,” Agarkar concluded.