NEW DELHI: Former India batting coach Sanjay Bangar anticipates that Indian captain Rohit Sharma will adopt a slightly more conservative approach during the upcoming three-match ODI series against England. After a lean run of form, Bangar believes Rohit will be eager to rediscover his touch with the bat and build momentum ahead of the 2025 Champions Trophy.
The series, starting February 6 in Nagpur, will serve as crucial preparation for India’s ODI plans. While the squad is yet to be announced, Rohit is expected to lead the team and open the batting.
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Speaking on Star Sports, Bangar noted, “This is a format wherein he has faced a lot of success, and he would be hungry for runs. He would want to put his lack of form or run of poor scores behind. It’s going to be interesting to see how he approaches his batting in the first 10 overs because he wanted to play a little bit differently.”
Bangar speculated that Rohit might tweak his approach during the initial overs, balancing aggression with stability to ensure consistent scoring. “Whether he plays with the same tempo or goes back to the tempo which gave him a lot of high scores, he would certainly need runs in the bank. That’s where we could see a slightly different Rohit Sharma in the first 10 overs,” Bangar added.
When discussing Rohit’s likely opening partner, Bangar emphasised the impressive form of Yashasvi Jaiswal but suggested that the young batter could serve as a backup option.
“Yashasvi Jaiswal is somebody who has been very impressive. He can be your backup top-order batter. So, in case of an injury or something, he can come and play at that position,” Bangar remarked.
However, Bangar leaned towards Shubman Gill as Rohit’s first-choice opening partner, citing Gill’s remarkable ODI form. “You would still want to see Shubman Gill in action because his year had been phenomenal. So Shubman Gill and Rohit Sharma, along with Virat Kohli, would certainly be the starting top three positions,” he concluded.
