India might have won the ODI series against England 2-1, but there were some grave concerns for the hosts during the series. Time and time again, the India openers comprising Shikhar Dhawan, KL Rahul failed, and Ajinkya Rahane, when given a chance, failed to deliver in the third ODI in Kolkata.
India team's report card for ODI series
Had it not been for some majestic performances from skipper Virat Kohli and middle order batsmen like Yuvraj Singh, MS Dhoni and Kedar Jadhav, the three-match ODI series could have been disastrous for India. All these mentioned players managed to score runs for India when required to help India emerge victorious.
In the three-match series, India's first wicket partnership read 13, 14, 13 runs respectively, which is dismal especially when they are playing at home. There was not a single match, where the middle order was not under pressure. India have always had great openers like Virender Sehwag, Sachin Tendulkar, Sourav Ganguly in recent times, where they gave solid start and provided a solid base for the rest of the batsmen to follow.
The situation was completely different for India in the ODI series. None of the openers even looked comfortable on the pitch with Shikhar scoring 12 runs in two matches, Rahul (24 in three) and Rahane finished with one run in the third ODI.
In all these recent failures of the India openers, one felt the absence of Rohit Sharma, who has not played any cricket for India after his last outing against New Zealand on October 29. The India opener suffered an injury on his right upper quadriceps tendon, leading him to be absent from the cricket scene for a long time. The player is not yet fit, but has eyed the upcoming Test series against Australia for comeback.
The Australia series will be followed by IPL 2017, and also there will no limited overs series against Australia, which means the recently concluded series against England was the last ODI before the Champions Trophy in June. Rohit is expected to play for Mumbai Indians in the IPL, and he is surely going to be picked for the Champions Trophy as the number one opener.
Though Virat Kohli believes it is just a matter of time for the openers to score runs, there is a serious need for the selectors to pick the right opening pair for Rohit in the Champion Trophy. They cannot afford to pick an out-of-form player for such a huge event. Shikhar and Rohit might have opened quite a number of times, but the left-hander's form of late has not been good.
With no limited overs series for India ahead of the Champions Trophy, Shikhar, Rahul and Rahane will look for a solid performance in the IPL to get back into form and increase their chances of partnering Rohit at the top.
