Ian Chappell’s Earnest Advice To Virat Kohli: Bat At Number 3; Dhoni Seems To Disagree

Team India is already getting scornful remarks for selecting a relatively weaker team compared to the erstwhile World Cup Indian squads; now the criticism is rife amongst veteran cricketers regarding India’s star batsman Virat Kohli’s batting position change from number 3 to number 4.

Fans are already concerned that India might not even make it to the semi-finals in the upcoming World Cup.
Ian Chappell’s Say

Ian Chappell Advice Virat Kohli To Bat At Number 3

Veteran cricketers like Ian Chappell (former Australian captain) and V.V.S. Laxman (former Indian batsman) have both reiterated the very fact that Kohli should come to bat at one-down (number 3) which is his usual position in the Indian batting lineup.

Challenging India’s current lineup as shaky and unpromising, Ian Chappell has advised team India to retain Virat Kohli at the number three spot in order to score more runs and avoid getting knocked out with short-pitched deliveries. We all know how the Indian team topples down like a deck of cards when the starting order collapses when star players get bowled out and the rest of team succumbs to pressure.

He challenged that India’s bowling has been really reckless during the Australian tour and there are no signs that it might be rectified during the World Cup.

Chappell also suggested that India should replace out of form Shikhar Dhawan with Stuart Binny as an opener to begin the innings with cracking performer Rohit Sharma to get a solid start in preliminary overs in order to achieve a good score.

MS Dhoni’s Decision

India captain M.S. Dhoni has, however, decided to keep firm on his decision to keep Kohli at number 4 and assumes this might be the starting lineup on a permanent basis. He feels that the team lineup has been adjudged accordingly to their fitness and current performance levels and they have the ability to win all matches in the World Cup if they put their heads together into the game. His main area of focus remains on how the team bats in the last 10-12 overs with a few wickets in hand.

He says that the very reason as to why Virat Kohli is batting at number four is to help strengthen the middle and lower-middle order of our team’s batting lineup. He feels that Kohli’s experience is crucial in giving India a breakthrough from dismal losses.

He also supported Shikhar Dhawan’s current performance and said that he feels Dhawan did decently well in the ODIs. We can just pray that this formula works, although it isn’t yet against England. India is on a losing streak and we hope this changes during the World Cup or else India may get knocked out in the group stages even before stepping into a quarter-final! It would be shameful if India loses their first match against Pakistan and loses their winning streak against the country they have been defeating in World Cups since time immemorial.

Let’s hope for the best and keep our fingers crossed!