India vs Ireland: Will Virat Kohli open with Rohit Sharma or Yashasvi Sharma retain position in T20 World Cup 2024?

Add as a preferred source on Google

India vs Ireland: The Indian cricket team will kick off their T20 World Cup 2024 campaign against Ireland at the Nassau County International Cricket Stadium on Wednesday, June 5. The Men in Blue, who lost the ODI World Cup 2023 final in November, are in search of their first ICC trophy since 2013.

The team has once again trusted in the experience of Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma, and the experienced campaigners have been named in the 15-member squad.

Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli made a comeback to the T20I format for the first time after T20 World Cup 2022 in January this year. Rohit made a return to the format as the captain of the team, while Kohli as one of their top-order batters.

Despite the presence of numerous talented youngsters, the BCCI selectors have shown their confidence in the star duo, and backed them once again to lift the ICC trophy together.

However, their role in the team has definitely changed. Rohit Sharma isn't in his prime T20 form, and number three spot is not the ideal batting position for Virat Kohli as per many.

The star batter himself has given his best performance in T20 format over the last few years as an opener. His numbers as Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) opener in the IPL are there to be seen.

In the IPL 2024, Kohli made it his mission to prove his critics wrong by improving his run rate. He won the Orange Cap after scoring 741 runs at a strike rate in excess of 150. The 35-year-old has reinvented himself as a T20 batter and also started playing the slog sweep frequently.

IND vs IRE: Will Virat Kohli open with Rohit Sharma?

Sanju Samson came out to open with Rohit Sharma in India's only warm-up match against Bangladesh on June 1. Virat Kohli, who arrived in the USA late, opted to sit out, while Yashasvi Jaiswal wasn't given a batting opportunity at all.

The move from the Indian team management came as a big hint that Virat Kohli would replace Sanju Samson and open with Rohit Sharma against Ireland, and other matches in the ICC showpiece event.

T20 cricket has changed a lot with time, and the formula to come out all guns blazing from ball one has been followed by all teams across the globe. With the fielding restrictions on in the first six overs, Virat Kohli can come out and express himself, and give the team a flying start.

Also, Kohli has been playing the anchor role for India for over a decade now. It would be even better for the team if he bats from the beginning and stays till the end.

Virat Kohli at number three cannot be discarded, but it's something which is very unlikely and would come as a surprise for everyone if it happens at all.