The opening experiments – Middle order batsmen who opened in Tests for India

“Yes, we are definitely looking (at Rohit) as an opener, and we want to give him an opportunity.” Chief selector MSK Prasad’s statement on trialling Rohit Sharma as an opener sparked a great furore in the cricket world. India are currently struggling to find a long-term opening pair. The likes of Murali Vijay, Shikhar Dhawan, KL Rahul have failed to perform consistently. This has prompted the selectors to take a chance on their legendary white-ball cricketer who bats in the middle order in the longest format.

Also read: Should Rohit Sharma be India’s next Test opener?

However, this approach by the selectors isn’t new. England facing the same dilemma tried their white-ball opener and middle order batsman in first-class cricket, Jason Roy at the top. The move failed miserably and the selectors dropped him from the Test side altogether.

For years, the Indian selectors have frequently promoted middle order batsmen to the opening slot. Here are all such who were tried in this century (1st January 2000 onwards).

VVS Laxman

VVS Laxman

India promoted this stylish Hyderabadi batsman at the opening slot first time in the Caribbean tour of 1997. Laxman began well with a knock of 67. He later produced a few good scores at home and also struck a classic 167 in Sydney, Australia but his frequent failures caught up with him. In 15 Tests that he opened for India, Laxman averaged a mere 28.54.

MSK Prasad

The current chief selector himself opened in a Test for India. Prasad, a wicketkeeper from Andhra, opened against the fiery Australian bowling attack at Sydney in 2000. He was dismissed for 5 and 3 and was never asked to open again.

Hemang Badani and Sameer Dighe

On his Test debut against Zimbabwe in Harare, Badani was asked to open the innings. He lasted only six balls and got out LBW for two. In the second innings, India promoted wicketkeeper Sameer Dighe to the top spot. He fell after adding four runs. Both never batted at the opening slot for India afterwards.

Sanjay Bangar

The talented all-rounder scored a century batting at number seven in his second Test. For the England tour, he was promoted to the opening spot. In difficult conditions, Bangar enjoyed good start with a knock of 68 at Leeds. He scored two fifties against West Indies at home. The experiment was discontinued after his failures in New Zealand.

Virender Sehwag

The most common case-study invoked when middle order batsmen play as an opener. After scoring 105 on Test debut against South Africa in South Africa batting at number six, Sehwag was soon promoted to the opening slot for the England tour. His 84 from 96 balls at Lord’s set the tone for his career. He ended up playing 98 Tests as an opener and also became the first triple-centurion for India.

Parthiv Patel

Parthiv Patel

The diminutive wicketkeeper was renowned for his superior batting skills. He made sporadic appearances as an opening batsman. He was used more as an emergency resource. In six innings that he opened, Parthiv scored 265 runs at an average of 53 including three fifties.

Yuvraj Singh

Another genius white-ball batsman who failed to establish himself in the Test setup. In his sixth Test match, selectors sent Yuvraj to open the innings alongside Sehwag in Chennai against Australia. While Sehwag blazed to 155, Yuvraj fell for eight. In the second innings, he remained not out for seven. He did play a total of 40 Tests for India but opened only once.

Irfan Pathan

A move of India’s most controversial coach. Greg Chappell promoted the left-arm swing sensation Irfan Pathan to the opening slot. He responded with a promising 93 against Sri Lanka in Delhi. However, India discarded the ploy later. He did open thrice again but those were drastic situations.

Dinesh Karthik

Dinesh Karthik

With the wicketkeeper spot taken for good by Mahendra Singh Dhoni, Karthik needed to find ways to get into the Indian team. He played first six Tests as an opener in away conditions and Karthik rose to the challenge. He played a crucial role in India’s 1-0 series win over England in 2007. At an average of 40.85, Karthik scored 572 runs in eight Tests at the opening slot.

Hanuma Vihari

In the 3rd Test against Australia at Melbourne in the 2018-19 tour, Vihari opened the innings for India. The middle-order batsman scored only 21 runs in his two innings but played 111 balls in total. He returned to the middle order after this one brief stint.

Apart from these names, Rahul Dravid and Cheteshwar Pujara have opened the innings multiple times for India. Since they are number three batsmen, they are not included in this list. All-rounder Iqbal Siddiqui was sent to score the winnings runs in his only Test. He scored five runs from two balls as an opener. It remains his first and final Test.