Ishan Kishan's batting position in the Asia Cup and subsequently the World Cup has become a debating topic in the cricketing fraternity. The left-hander opened the innings in all three ODIs against the West Indies and is set to make it to both showpiece events as the reserve wicketkeeper. While India seem to be certain about KL Rahul regaining his fitness on time for both tournaments, there has been no update around his injury ever since the practice match took place.
But what if Rahul remains unfit or gets injured again? Where will Ishan Kishan bat? Former India head coach Ravi Shastri has given his verdict on the matter stating that India, in that case, will have no option but play Kishan at the top of the order and not in the middle. According to him, the likes of Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma and Shubman Gill will have to adjust with Kishan opening the innings.
"At the top of the order, nowhere else. The others have to be flexible. Between Rohit, Virat and Gill, that can be 2-3-4" Shastri said while speaking on Star Sports' show 'Selection Day'. Shastri also pointed out that it will be a useless move if Kishan is made to bat at five or six as the youngster doesn't know how to bat at those positions. Notably Kishan got a double-century against Bangladesh in ODIs while opening the innings.
"We've seen the stats, stats don't lie over a period of time, so I think a left-right batting combination at the top will help. If you tinker with his [Kishan's] batting position, if you put him at 5-6, it's useless. He doesn't know how to play. The pressure is on him to bat differently. He's got a double-hundred at the top of the order, he's got some runs, he scores quickly. The thing with Kishan is if he's there for 30-40 balls, he'll go, he'll get you off to a flier," Ravi Shastri added.
