‘He is good enough at number 4’ – Former India coach Ravi Shastri suggests new batting position for legendary India batter

Ahead of the upcoming Asia Cup and ODI World Cup, India is looking for a stable player at number 4. The position that has troubled the team for the last four or five years is yet to be cemented by a player. Ahead of two prestigious tournaments, skipper Rohit Sharma also accepted the problem and said that the team is looking into it.

Meanwhile, former India coach Ravi Shastri suggested that Virat Kohli should bat at number 4 to help his team. Speaking about it, Shastri said that he often thought about it, as Kohli has great numbers at that position. He also said that pushing Kohli down the order will help India keep a stable middle order.

“If Virat has to bat at four, he will bat at four in the interest of the side. You know, there were times I thought of it,” Shastri told the Star Sports channel. “You know, because if we lose two or three at the top, we are gone, and it was proven.” If you look at Virat Kohli’s record, he is good enough at number four.

‘If Virat was captain…’ – Rashid Latif drops a bombshell

In the same conversation, Ravi Shastri was joined by former Pakistan superstar Rashid Latif. Latif also echoed Shastri’s words and said that trusting KL Rahul and Shreyas Iyer would be risky as they are coming back from long injuries. He also said that if Kohli had been captain of the side, India would have been 100 per cent prepared until now. He further added that India recently started utilising bench strength.

“Indian team management has experimented with several players, and if I talk about their batting, the middle and lower order—from numbers 4 to 7—they just have not allowed any new player to settle down. There have been too many changes”, Rashid Latif bashed Indian team management. “I would say it is risky because KL and Iyer are returning from injuries,” Latif further added.

Further speaking about the captaincy issue and India’s preparations, Latif drew a comparison. He said, “If they had allowed Virat Kohli to continue as captain, India would have been 100 per cent prepared for the ODI World Cup by this time.” Notably, India will start their Asia Cup campaign against Pakistan on September 2 in Colombo.