Melbourne 11 - Unfortunate, but Pujara has to open in Melbourne

[fineleg]

There just seems to be no other choice, we need to win Melbourne, MUST win match for India.

Pujara is anyway coming in within 2-4 overs to the crease.

 

Hardik Pandya vs Parthiv Patel in the 11 - I'd choose Hardik. Parthiv wont score more than 15-20 against Aus attack.

 

1. Mayank Agarwal

2. Pujara (sorry to do this, but no other choice)

3. Rahane

4. Kohli

5. Vihari

6. Hardik Pandya (instead of Rohit Sharma and Parthiv Patel the batsman)

7. Rishabh Pant

8. Ashwin (if injured, then Jadeja)

9. Ishant Sharma (or Bhuvi if batting bolster)

10. Md. Shami

11. Bumrah

 

Edited December 17, 2018 by fineleg

[Austin 3:!6]

There just seems to be no other choice, we need to win Melbourne, MUST win match for India.
Pujara is anyway coming in within 2-4 overs to the crease.
 
Hardik Pandya vs Parthiv Patel in the 11 - I'd choose Hardik. Parthiv wont score more than 15-20 against Aus attack.
 
1. Mayank Agarwal
2. Pujara (sorry to do this, but no other choice)
3. Rahane
4. Kohli
5. Vihari
6. Hardik Pandya (instead of Rohit Sharma and Parthiv Patel the batsman)
7. Rishabh Pant
8. Ashwin (if injured, then Jadeja)
9. Ishant Sharma (or Bhuvi if batting bolster)
10. Md. Shami
11. Bumrah
 

Terrific team except Ashwin. It don't matter if he is fit or not but he is no longer the bowler he was couple of years ago. I will play Kuldeep Yadav instead who troubled Aussies when we last played tests with them in India.

Sent from my SM-G950F using Tapatalk

[Cricketics]

It will be disgrace to ask Pujara to open. Leave the guy alone and let him bat at 3. He might score 50 odd opening but it still doesn’t help India as a youngster will eventually come in, and no one guarantees how much Pujara’s partner at opening will score. So a youngster anyway could get exposed early if Pujara’s partner fails. 

 

So the whole idea of wnating Pujara to open doesn’t realy add up.

 

 

[ShoonyaSifar]

Leave him at 3. Better to ask Pant to open. Can’t do worse than the current openers. And please no Pandya. He’s bowled total 28 overs in one FCmatch since his injury, don’t think he’s fully there yet.

 

Not sure if they are trying to hide Bhuvi’s fitness issues. He was out of sorts and did not look 100% fit in T20s. Did not bowl in the practice match either.

[Temujin Khaghan]

14 minutes ago, fineleg said:

There just seems to be no other choice, we need to win Melbourne, MUST win match for India.

Pujara is anyway coming in within 2-4 overs to the crease.

 

Hardik Pandya vs Parthiv Patel in the 11 - I'd choose Hardik. Parthiv wont score more than 15-20 against Aus attack.

 

1. Mayank Agarwal

2. Pujara (sorry to do this, but no other choice)

3. Rahane

4. Kohli

5. Vihari

6. Hardik Pandya (instead of Rohit Sharma and Parthiv Patel the batsman)

7. Rishabh Pant

8. Ashwin (if injured, then Jadeja)

9. Ishant Sharma (or Bhuvi if batting bolster)

10. Md. Shami

11. Bumrah

 

Fineleg, you know what I hope kohli tries this English strategy of batting on steroids. But make rahane open and WHICH PART OF LEAVE PUJARA ALONE DONT YOU GUYS UNDERSTAND!!!!????

 

LEAVE PUJARA ALONE

LEAVE PUJARA ALONE

LEAVE PUJARA ALONE

LEAVE PUJARA ALONE

LEAVE PUJARA ALONE

LEAVE PUJARA ALONE!!!

Edited December 17, 2018 by Temujin Khaghan

[fineleg]

11 minutes ago, Cricketics said:

It will be disgrace to ask Pujara to open.

 

Our openers are indeed a disgrace and hence this tough situation.

[ShoonyaSifar]

Making Dravid open in 2007-08 Aus tour (to accommodate Yuvraj in top 6)nearly derailed Dravid’s test career. Let’s not do that with Pujara. Poor guy has already suffered enough.

[Trichromatic]

30 minutes ago, ShoonyaSifar said:

Leave him at 3. Better to ask Pant to open. Can’t do worse than the current openers. And please no Pandya. He’s bowled total 28 overs in one FCmatch since his injury, don’t think he’s fully there yet.

 

Not sure if they are trying to hide Bhuvi’s fitness issues. He was out of sorts and did not look 100% fit in T20s. Did not bowl in the practice match either.

Keeper can't open.

[ShoonyaSifar]

5 minutes ago, Trichromatic said:

Keeper can't open.

Parthiv opened in Jo’burg and in the series vs England in 2016 under Kohli. So as a short term measure why not? Far fetched yes but not impossible 

[Trichromatic]

7 minutes ago, ShoonyaSifar said:

Parthiv opened in Jo’burg and in the series vs England in 2016 under Kohli. So as a short term measure why not? Far fetched yes but not impossible 

Next pitch is expected to be flat at their home.

[wanted_desi]

Lol Pandya is useless with bat at #6. Might as well open with Patel.

[zen]

If you are bringing in Rahane, who is also plays as top order batsmen, at #3, why not make him open? What would be the point in unsettling positions of two players. Since Rahane struggles with spin relatively, opening with him could be a good move as the surface at Melbourne and Sydney could assist spinners relatively more.

[rtmohanlal]

best option from the team point of view is  Pujara to open... To hell with Pujara's career at the cost of team result ......

[WeStMiDz]

An alternative option would be:

 

1) Parthiv

2) Mayank

3) Pujara

4) Kohli

5) Rahane

6) Vihari

7) Pandya

8) Ashwin/Jadeja

9) Ishant

10) Bumrah

11) Shami

 

Incredibly tough on Pant but a purely horses for courses selection and for the balance of the team. Must be stressed to him that he has not been dropped. 

 

This XI covers all bases. 

[kohli]

Rohit/vihari

Agarwal

Puji

Kohli

Rahane

Vihari/ pandya

Pant

[The Realist]

Its embarrassing and downright disgraceful that on the 3rd overseas tour in a year the opening situation is in crisis. Two young or at least promising domestic level players should have been given a decent run especially in home tests to get them up to speed for the away series. Instead journeymen and mental midgets like Dhawan, Vijay and Rahul have been given endless chances in a revolving door selection policy.

 

In other more accountable regimes coaches and selectors would have been fired for this shambles. 

[zen]

With the new additions, I would go like this: 

 

Agarwal

Rahane (he can throw around his bat till he gets out, and may not have to deal with spin) 

Pujara

Kohli

Vihari (will bowl spin as well if required) 

Pandya (give him a relatively new ball too ) 

Pant

Kuldeep

Ishant

Shami

Bumrah 

 

 

 

Edited December 17, 2018 by zen

[coffee_rules]

Mayank (the great Indian hope to find a decent opener)

Parthiv

Chepu

Kohli

Rahane

Vihari

Pandya (  , yes, I will go with him to bolster batting , our need of the hour)

Ashwin - batting

Bhuvi - batting

Shami

Bumrah

[prasen82]

parthiv patel as opener looks good, but boy ! parthiv will drop twice the number of catches that pant will.. and that will be more expensive than the runs he scores..

 

either pujara or rahane.. if pujara fails then we lose the test immediately, with rahane not much.. so why not Rahane !!

 

[Temujin Khaghan]

 

Batting non stop @fineleg 

No seriously let's try this...

 

A. Duty of the top 5 to go in with an intent to score 100+

Rahane

Mayank

Pujara

Kohli

Vihari

B. Duty of the lower middle to go in with an intent to score 50+

Pant 

Pandya - stokes role

Jadeja - spin allrounder

Bhuvi - woakes role

C. Shami is retarded and bumrah is batting handicapped.. so whatever

Shami

Bumrah