Ruturaj Gaikwad Likely to Get Opening Role in Final Two New Zealand ODIs
Ruturaj Gaikwad has been added to the Indian team for the remaining two ODIs against New Zealand. But he won't be coming out to bat at number four, since Shreyas Iyer is available with the team. Instead, he will be opening along with Rohit Sharma.
The Indian team has gone through some key changes ahead of the fourth ODI against New Zealand. For this game, the team will be without Shubman Gill and KL Rahul, who played a key role in the top five of the team's batting line-up.
In their place, Ishan Kishan and Ruturaj Gaikwad made their way to the team. Questions were being raised on who could open for the team along with Rohit Sharma, but the reports suggest that the selectors have gone with Ruturaj Gaikwad for the same.
It will be Ruturaj Gaikwad who takes the place of Shubman Gill to open for the Indian team. And Ishan Kishan will be heading to the number five spot in the batting line-up, as the Indian team gets a left-handed batsman, which they needed the most.
Our Take
It will be a huge task for Ruturaj Gaikwad to open for the Indian team in overseas conditions. But he has been able to do well for the ODI side in the limited number of opportunities that he got, as he now aims to give his best for the team once again in the remaining two ODIs against New Zealand. Gaikwad might be looking at this as an opportunity to solidify his spot in the World Cup team, as the SENA conditions become a key here.