Shreyas Iyer Virat Kohli’s number 4 no clear replacement, Pujara says “This is still the early day”

As soon as Virat Kohli retired from Tests, the biggest question that arises is, who will fill his No. 4 spot? Shreyas Iyer comes to mind, as the instant answer, but then Cheteshwar Pujara has said, that it will take a couple of series, to find the best answer. “We will need a couple of series to figure out who is well suited to bat at No. 4, because it’s an important position,” Pujara told ESPNcricinfo. “You need your best batter to bat at No. 4. And at this time, I think it’s still a spot where the team management will have to figure out who is the most suited player at No. 4.”

This is something, that the Indian team hasn’t faced in a while. For the longest time, Sachin Tendulkar held that spot, and thereafter Virat Kohli made that his own, for 10-12 years. That throws in a few options for now — KL Rahul, Iyer, Rajat Patidar and even Devdutt Padikkal. “There are a lot of players who are making their way into the playing XI, no one has a secured spot at this stage. It’s a process which will take some time.”

“It’s still early days to make a call, but it will be important to see who performs well in England because someone who can perform well in England can have that No. 4 spot,” Pujara said. Another option is that of Shubman Gill, the player touted as the next skipper.

“He [Gill] There is an option, of course. But he is batting at number 3, “He said.” Does he want to move his place? Does he want to bat at number 4? We have to see. Shubman is one who is more capable of playing new balls. He is opening the first innings, before he started batting at number 3. He likes to bat when the ball is a bit strict and new. Will he be able to manage with an old ball? This is a big question at this level. ,

“Since he has batted well with the new ball, I would still say that he should be batting in [the] The top three, which is his ideal position, suits him well. If he performs bats at number 4 in England and if he can succeed in that situation, yes, he can be number 4 for the Indian team. ,