India vs Australia: First T20 series to begin in Mohali on Tuesday; Virat to be third opener
Mohali: In the recent Asia Cup, star batsman Virat Kohli stepped into the field as an opener and made a splash. In this tournament, he also made up for the lack of a century that has been bothering him for many years. With this, the demand to start the innings with him in the next month's T20 World Cup has gained momentum.
However, captain Rohit Sharma has announced that Rahul will open with him in the mega tournament. Kohli will be available as their third opener. He said that the team management is clear about the role of each player in the team. The three-match T20 series against Australia will begin in Mohali on Tuesday. In this context, he addressed a press conference.
"It is good that we have many options in front of us. Before a big tournament like the World Cup, it is an advantage for the team to have players, who can play in any position. Moreover, if we get into experiments, we should not think that there is some problem in the team. And we have a third opener available in the form of Virat. There is also a possibility that he will start the innings in some matches. In fact, we did not specifically include the third opener in the team. They did not want to do any experiments in the T20 world. I and Rahul will enter the field as openers. We are clear on KL's game. He is a fantastic player.” explained Rohit.
“Also, it is known that Umesh Yadav has been included in the team in place of the pacer Shami as he has contracted Corona. While Prasad was suffering from an injury, Siraj was playing in the counties and Umesh was selected as Avesh had not yet recovered from his illness.”
The Indian team reached Mohali on Saturday night for the three-match T20 series against Australia. Later, the team participated in the net session at the PCA Stadium on Sunday. Kohli, who came before everyone else, sweated on the field for 45 minutes. He was seen practising big shots in pace and spin bowling. In line with the team's strategy, Kohli impressed from the start by showing aggressiveness in Asia Cup 2022.
Former Indian players Yuvraj Singh and Harbhajan Singh, named after Yuvi and Bhajji, will get a rare honour at the Mohali stands. The Punjab Cricket Association (PCA) said that the south pavilion of the local stadium will be named after Bhajji and the north pavilion after Yuvi. They will be unveiled before the match on Tuesday.
