ENG vs IND 2022: Ajit Agarkar wants Cheteshwar Pujara or Hanuma Vihari to open the batting in 5th Test

Former Indian fast bowler Ajit Agarkar wants either Cheteshwar Pujara or Hanuma to open the innings in the fifth Test match against England. As Rohit Sharma is currently under isolation after he was tested positive for Covid-19 on Saturday.

Agarkar wants an experienced batter to open the innings for India. As Mayank Agarwal didn’t play the four-day warm-up match against Leicestershire, Agarkar feels the Karnataka batter might not have had enough time to prepare for the fifth Test match.

Meanwhile, Hanuma Vihari had opened the innings for India in the Melbourne Test match against Australia on the 2018-19 tour and he has a solid defensive technique to tackle the tough English conditions. The openers always play a key role in England as the duke ball is known to swing in the first two sessions.

On the other hand, Cheteshwar Pujara has all the experience under his belt and he can also open the innings for India. Pujara had scored 720 runs in County Division two in five matches at an average of 120 while playing for Sussex. The right-hander scored four successive centuries and batted at the top of his game. Thus, Pujara has recently savored success in English conditions.

“I know KS Bharat got some runs in the warm-up game. The team management will probably have a look at how prepared Mayank Agarwal is after joining the team. I don’t know if he has enough time to prepare for this one-off Test. With Rohit in isolation, I believe experience will help in opening, whether it is Vihari or Pujara, who has been around for a long time,” Agarkar was quoted as saying on Sony Sports.

“Vihari has already opened for India a couple of times. So, that would be my pick, one of those two if Mayank doesn’t look quite ready as he didn’t have enough time in the nets and is clearly not going to get any (practice) games now. In my opinion, it’s better to go with a little bit more experience because it is a one-off Test,” he added.

It will be interesting to note India’s opening combination if Rohit Sharma fails to recover for the fifth Test match while Shubman Gill is expected to open the innings. The rescheduled Test match will be played at Edgbaston, Birmingham on Friday.