New Delhi: Since Virat Kohli has been rested for the three-match T20I series against Sri Lanka, one of the major decisions which MS Dhoni will have to take is who should bat at the number four position.
In Kohli's absence, Dhoni might promote Rahane to bat at number three, while fourth position is likely to be taken by either Suresh Raina or Yuvraj Singh.
On the eve of the first T20I match, Dhoni said he wanted Raina to bat at No. 4 considering the upcoming ICC World Twenty20.
"We are not a team who play a lot of T20s. We usually play like one game in a bilateral series. So, it now gives us the opportunity to give the batters maximum exposure. In this series, there will be an opportunity to try him at No. 3 and use some other batsman at No. 4. But it will be appropriate if Raina bats at No. 4 so that the team can get used to his batting at that slot," he said.
Meanwhile, throwing his hat into the debate, Pakistani legend Wasim Akram pitched for Yuvraj batting up the order.
“With Virat resting, I would like to see Yuvraj bat higher up. The left-hander will gain confidence by being out in the middle. Ravi Shastri has a shrewd cricket brain and he knows how to manage players.When a senior player makes a comeback it is important to nurse him through the early days. They will take time to re-adjust to the environment, so the team management has a vital role to play,” Akram wrote in a column for The Times of India.
Here is what we think should be India's batting order for the three-match series:
Shikhar Dhawan, Rohit Sharma, Ajinkya Rahane, Suresh Raina, Yuvraj Singh, MS Dhoni, Hardik Pandya, Ravindra Jadeja, R Ashwin, Ashish Nehra, Jasprit Bumrah
