India are set to field two debutant openers, Prithvi Shaw and Mayank Agarwal, in the first ODI against New Zealand here today after skipper Virat Kohli confirmed that K L Rahul will continue to bat in the middle-order.
Rahul will keep wickets and bat at number five like he did during the Australia series, Kohli said on Tuesday.
“Prithvi’s definitely going to start and whoever the replacement is, we’ll ask for an opener (which has already been decided with Agarwal replacing Rohit). KL will bat in the middle-order. We want him to get accustomed to that role and keep as well,” said Kohli.
Kohl said Rohit’s absence doesn’t hamper the team’s preparations as there are not many ODI series lined up in the year of T20 World Cup.
“I understand it’s an unfortunate situation that Rohit can’t be a part of this series. When you talk about one-day cricket and T20 cricket and Test cricket now, he’s one guy who’s always on the list first. But the thing is that we don’t have any one-day tournaments to look forward to.
“It’s if anything an ideal time for him to go away and rectify this as soon as he can and come back. He played the T20I series, so from the team’s balance point of view heading into the World Cup year, it doesn’t really hamper the combination as far as the T20s are concerned,” he said.
Kohli said injuries to Dhawan and Rohit are a good opportunity for Shaw and Agarwal.
“Rohit’s injury is unfortunate but someone who steps in, it’s a chance for that guy to experience this kind of pressure & expectation, and for us to see who are the guys that cope with it.”