Love the idea of Rishabh Pant opening with Rohit Sharma: Sanjay Manjrekar names openers for T20I World Cup

Ahead of the T20I World Cup 2022, India captain Rohit Sharma and Rahul Dravid face a dilemma regarding one of the opening slots. While Rohit has been a mainstay, his partner in crime KL Rahul has barely played for India in 2022, owing to his injury woes and Covid. 

This means that the Indian team have experimented a lot up the order, with Rishabh Pant and Suryakumar Yadav also opening alongside the 'Hitman'. 

Former Indian cricketer turned pundit Sanjay Manjrekar has said that he 'loves' the prospect of Pant opening alongside Rohit. While KL Rahul is expected to be back before the T20I World Cup 2022, and though he will lead the team against Zimbabwe, it remains to be seen how the southpaw will fare after coming off a lengthy injury layoff. 

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Manjrekar in a conversation with Sports18 was quizzed to pick up India's top three batters, but with the likes of Rohit, Rahul, Suryakumar, Virat Kohli, and Pant all in contention the pundit stated that it's a very tough call. 

"Not answering that. It’s a tough one, really tough because there are some serious contenders there. That’s why these matches before the T20 World Cup are so important. KL Rahul has to be part of the T20 team. So has to be Virat Kohli just because of the stage and the pressure that comes in. It’s going to be a tough one. We have seen Suryakumar Yadav bat in the top three, we have seen Rishabh Pant bat in the top three. These are all very exciting options, so let’s see how it goes," said Manjrekar. 

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Despite the dilemma, however, the former India international revealed that he'd 'love' to see Pant opening alongside Rohit. 

"I love that idea of Rishabh Pant opening with Rohit Sharma. So that is something I am excited about, the possibility is there. It’s such a difficult one. You have got Virat Kohli, you have got KL Rahul, you have got Suryakumar Yadav and I think these are the three serious contenders. I am stumped," he added.