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Rohit Sharma, KL Rahul Or…? Who Will Bat At Number 3 For India During Boxing Day Test?

Bhargav Dixit

Neither of Rohit Sharma or KL Rahul has batted at No. 3 in the last six years. [Source: @squareecut/@probatsman/X]Neither of Rohit Sharma or KL Rahul has batted at No. 3 in the last six years. [Source: @squareecut/@probatsman/X]

India running out of patience with regard to batter Shubman Gill isn’t surprising by any means. Since his memorable 91 (146) during the unforgettable Gabba Test, the third of his career, four years ago, all he has averaged across 16 Test innings outside Asia is 17.80.

Gill’s justified axing, however, highlights a major concern around India’s No. 3 in Test cricket. A position long held by Cheteshwar Pujara; Gill was roped in as his replacement after a failed experiment including Hanuma Vihari. Barring the home series against England earlier this year, Gill never provided signs of making the position his own – much like making this format his own till date.

Listed at No. 3 on the team sheet, India captain Rohit Sharma will bat at the position for the first time in nine years unless he decides to find solace at the top of the order to disrupt a comparatively settled combination featuring Yashasvi Jaiswal and KL Rahul.

Rohit Sharma Stats At No. 3

Sharma, whose last Test appearance at the given position had come against South Africa in Delhi in 2015, had registered his fourth duck at the time. In what remains his solitary No. 3 innings at home, it followed four similar instances outside India.

Coincidently, the first time when Sharma had batted at No. 3 in Test cricket was also during the fourth Test of India’s tour of Australia. Although in Sydney, it was followed by him playing the role once each in Fatullah and Galle.

All in all, across five Test innings at No. 3, Sharma has managed just 107 runs at an ordinary average of 21.40 including one half-century against Australia. While Sharma hasn’t batted one-down in ODIs in over a decade, his last such appearance at the highest level had come unsuccessfully against New Zealand in a forgettable ICC T20 World Cup 2021 encounter in Dubai.

KL Rahul Stats At No. 3

Assuming Sharma opens the batting, Rahul could be demoted to No. 3 to add another chapter to the team management's toying with his batting position across formats. Much like his skipper, even Rahul has batted five times at No. 3 in the format. With the last one of the same coming over six years ago, his 88 runs in this role have come at an average of 17.60.

Another similarity between the two right-handed batters is their lack of familiarity with the role even in limited-overs cricket. Without any major victory, the last of Rahul’s three ODI innings at No. 3 had come almost half-a-decade ago. While he has fared well at this position in the shortest format, he hasn’t batted there since November 2019.

Will Washington Sundar Be Promoted In The Batting Order?

Having opened the batting once unsuccessfully in international cricket, the highest that all-rounder Washington Sundar has batted for India is twice at No. 3. While each one of these three innings had come without any success in the ODI format, the highest that he has batted in Test cricket is No. 6.

Having said that, head coach Gautam Gambhir and Sundar’s likeness for each other is well-documented. From helping Sundar cope with struggles against Sri Lankan spinners to fast-tracking him in Test Playing XIs against New Zealand and Australia earlier this year, Gambhir’s tenure has provided ample opportunities for the 25-year-old player.

Therefore, as much as a left-field option it comes across on paper, one wouldn’t be astonished to see Sundar batting at No. 3 considering how much Gambhir believes in the multi-utility skills of an underutilised cricketer.