Mayank Agarwal replaced Prithvi Shaw in the India squad for the last two Tests
With KL Rahul and Murali Vijay failing in the first two Test matches and Prithvi Shaw out, the call to play Mayank Agarwal has only got louder.
Mayank, who along with Hardik Pandya, was flown to Australia after the second Test, has scored loads of runs and him failing to make the initial squad was a surprise in itself. But, Shaw's injury has opened the doors and it he could well face Mitchell Starc and Josh Hazlewood come Boxing Day.
But, former India batsman Sanjay Manjrekar feels despite Mayank's tremendous success, he could find it difficult on Australian pitches if he opnes at the Melbourne Cricket Ground in the Boxing Day Test.
In his column for ESPNCricinfo, Manjrekar wrote that Mayank deserves to make his Test debut in the Boxing Day Test especially because of the continuous failures of Rahul and Vijay but adds that it could be unfair on the youngster at the same time.
"With the mountain of runs he is scoring at the first-class level, coinciding with the failures of the existing openers, everyone agrees that Mayank Agarwal deserves a chance in the Indian team. My thought is: on Australian pitches, against the hard Kookaburra ball, is it fair to throw a young talent in as an opener with no practice games under his belt? Also in India's long history of Tests, there is not much evidence of front-line batsmen having made their debuts in Australia; there must be a reason for that.
"When national selectors want an opener they obviously look at openers from the domestic level. When I played domestic cricket I would cringe looking at the temperament and technique of many domestic openers. They were openers because they chose to be openers, not because they were suited to it. I am not saying Agarwal is not an opener by choice and temperament, but there is the option of having him bat in the nets a lot till his instincts become somewhat Australian, and then maybe introduce him to Test cricket in the final Test. If it was a Test match in India, it would be a no-brainer to play him straightaway," Manjrekar wrote.
So, what is his suggestion if not Mayank at the top? According to him, India could try Hanuma Vihari at the top of the order in Melbourne.
He goes on to explain that it won't be the first time a middle-order batsman will open the batting as Virender Sehwag has done that before and been extremely succesful.
"Hanuma Vihari has not set the stage on fire but he has batted decently in his two overseas Tests, and every time he has batted he has looked more a No. 1, 2 or 3 batsman to me than a No. 6.
"Indian cricket has had many instances of middle-order batsmen being asked to open in Tests for the first time in their careers and being successful. Virender Sehwag is the most obvious name here," the Mumbaikar said.
Vihari's promotion will be an interesting option as he bats higher up the order for Andhra Pradesh in Ranji Trophy and is more of a solid batsman than a quick accumulator of runs -- often a job for the No.6 batsman in Test cricket because of the situation.
The four-match series is currently tied at one a-piece and the third Test starts on December 26 in Melbourne.
